The Outsider
by BalletandBooks
Summary: Another after The Last Olympian High School story, but it's written from other people's perspectives.
1. Chapter 1

**Ok. I realize that a story like this has probably been done by lots of people, but I just want to say that I am not writing this to copy them, but because they inspired me to write this. It's like they gave me ideas. **

**Written after TLO but as if there was no TLH, ok? Also, Nico is only 1 year younger than them; 4 years (to me) seemed too long for the purpose of the story. (Sorry) **

**Sofi's a little of a Mary Sue**

Chapter 1: 1st day of school.

Character: Sofi Incas

Hi. I'm Sofi Incas and I'm in 11th grade, as of today. I'm really excited because I'm back at Goode. You see, every year we usually move somewhere new because of my parent's jobs, private investigators. This year, though, they retired, and became police here in New York!

Last year, I was friends with these two kids, Percy and Rachel. I heard Rachel was shipped off to a lady's academy, but Percy's still here. I hope we can still be friends.

As my mom pulled up to the school, I gave her a kiss on the cheek and hopped out of the car. I walked up the stairs to the school and made my way to the library.

On my way to the library, I over heard snippets of conversation from lots of people who seemed to be talking about the same subject.

"…And yeah! He's totally living with her!"

"..that goth girl and that emo kid."

"… a scar? There? That's totally wicked!"

"… He's all toned now!"

"… Ewmagawd! He looks older now, it's so hawt!"

"… and she's just walking around wearing a silver tiara as if she's a princess!"

"… I think she might want to join the feminists club?"

"… That boy makes me want to jump out of the closet!"

"… Do you think she'll want to join the mathaletes?"

"… Jackson better be on varsity swim this year."

Wait. Did he just say Jackson, as in Percy Jackson? I walk over to the kid who said that, George Dosik.

"Umm, excuse me. I couldn't help but overhear you, and I was wondering if you meant Jackson, as is Percy Jackson." I asked politely.

"Yeah, I did, and… Do I know you?" He asked stupidly.

"I should hope so!" I replied, "You live three doors down from me."

Hmm… that's interesting. If I see Percy today, I'll ask him what every one's been talking about.

Percy Cam POV

Annabeth and Percy walked into the school followed by Thalia and Nico.

It had only been a couple weeks since the end of the Titan War. To help with rebuilding Olympus, Annabeth decided she would stay with Percy and his family. Nico had nowhere else to go, and Lady Artemis wanted Thalia to find some teenage girls to recruit into the Hunters.

Percy and Annabeth grabbed hands and trudged onward.

"Annabeth, don't worry! You'll be fine." Percy reassured his girlfriend.

"No I won't. Look! They're already talking about us!"

I checked the homeroom board and saw that they were alphabetical. I-K was in room B106. As I walked down the hall, I saw some goth kids arguing with each other. They looked new, so as a "PALS", Peer Assistance Leadership Student, I felt it was my duty to walk up to them and ask what was wrong.

"Hello!" I said cheerily. They both glared at me, and I ignored their stares. "As the PALS captain of this school, I am here to help you solve your problems. What seems to be the matter?"

The girl had blue eyes and black hair, and she seemed to be wearing a tiara. Not a big one, but a really tiny one. The boy had dark eyes, they might have been a brown or a green at some times but to me they were just dark. His hair was falling over his eyes, but I don't think he minded. Ooh! This is who they were talking about! How they were related in any way to Percy, I don't know, because I don't think he's (Percy) goth at all.

"Well, I was wondering if you could tell me where C104 is." said the boy.

"Why of course I can!" I said, trying to make him smile. He didn't.

"Go down the hallway and to the left at the big poster of the fish." I told him with a smile. He nodded and walked away, unfazed.

"Hi. I'm Thalia. Can you tell me where C107 is? And don't try the cheery attitude on me. It isn't gonna work."

"Ok then, it is straight up the west staircase and to the right." I said plainly.

"Thanks." She said, and walked coolly. As she was walking away, I noticed an Aura of silver about her. Not literally like she was glowing, but like a feeling.

I walked to my homeroom from there, and guess who was standing in front of the room? It was Percy Jackson… and some blonde chick. I peeked from behind a row of lockers.

"… I'll miss you." She was saying.

"I'll miss you too." He sighed. "I'm worried something might come after you."

What might come after her?

"Perce," the girl said, "nothing's going to happen! And if it does, I got it." She said jokingly, but patting her boot.

I wonder what was in her boot?

He leaned in to kiss her, presumably, and being a SRM, Student Roll Model, I decided that now would be a good time to step in.

"Hi Percy! Nice to see you back at Goode!" I said.

Percy POV

Oh COME ON! Seriously! One last time, ya know?

Ugh. Sofi is some annoying goody two shoes who used to hang around Rachel and me. It really annoyed me how she would always be on every goody two shoes committee.

"Hem hem" I said, and the two stepped back from each other.

"Hi, I don't believe we've met. I'm Sofi Incas, Student Body President, PALS, SRM, and unofficial Welcome Committee of Goode High School!" I said perkily, putting out my hand.

"Annabeth Chase." She said, and gave Percy a kiss on the cheek. "Bye hero," She said, and briskly walked away.

Hero? What does that mean?

"Hi Percy! How was your summer?" I asked as I followed him into the classroom. He sighed, and he turned away.

"Fine. How was yours?" He said. I knew that wasn't true.

"Now, don't be like that. I am a PALS, so I know when something's wrong." I told him.

"Please. I went through some tough times this summer. I just want some privacy." He pleaded. I knew better.

"Don't worry! I'll sign you up for grief club." I told him.

He made an ungh noise and sat down. I sat next to him.

"So… do you want to talk about it?" I asked him. I believe that talking about things make it better. When my hermit crab had an aneurism, a therapist made me feel better.

"No, Sofi, please leave me alone! I seriously don't want to talk about it!" He said.

"Fine," I told him, "but you'll want to later." I wrote out a slip and gave it to him.

"Here. Take this. Study hall period in the library is where it's held." He reluctantly took the paper and shoved it in his pocket.

"OK class!" The teacher said. "I'm Ms. Reigh, your homeroom and possible math teacher! This is my first year teaching, so give me a break, ok!"

Ms. Reigh seemed nice. She was a petite blonde woman with light blue eyes, a cute nose, and curls.

I immediately went up to introduce myself.

**TBC… **


	2. Chapter 2

**Grr... On to chapter 2!**

****

Chapter 2: Homeroom

Character: Lillian Reigh

I was really excited for this year of teaching. I mean, a high school in New York is a huge challenge (or so I've been told), especially for my first year teaching. I, though, was prepared.

I walked into my classroom and patiently waited for ten minutes. After I didn't have anyone come in, I began to walk out of my classroom. As soon as I stepped into the doorframe, I heard a giggle.

"…and what if she's a monster?" a girl's voice asked.

"She won't be a monster. They usually aren't." This time, a boy's voice.

"Ms. Dodds, Manticore at Westover…?" She whispered.

I decided that this was a private conversation and decided to leave.

5 minutes later, kids began to come in. Each time a student walked in, I took in their description and what I thought they would be like.

Blonde hair, blue eyes, big chest. Tank top, tiny denim shorts. Smoky eye. I'm guessing popular, but skanky.

Brown hair, brown eyes, flat as a board. Purple cardigan, green shirt, and brown corduroy boot cut pants with flats. I'm guessing smart, but annoying.

Black hair (grey streak?), green eyes. Tall, not fat, but not skinny. Hmm… I don't know about this kid. I guess I'll find out.

The brown haired girl seemed to be pestering the black haired boy, eventually giving him a piece of paper, which he stuffed in his back pocket.

I decided it was time to introduce myself.

"OK class!" I said. "I'm Ms. Reigh, your homeroom and possible math teacher! This is my first year teaching, so give me a break, ok!"

Lots of kids looked up, and the brown haired girl ran up to my desk.

"Hi, I'm Sofi Incas, Nice to meet you." She stuck out her hand, and I shook it.

"Hi Sofi, nice to meet you too. Let me call attendance, though. Here, take a seat here up front." She looked elated. I guess I was right about her.

"Genny Ali?" I asked. A girl with black eyes and blonde dreads raised her hand.

"Charity Berger?" The girl with the blue eyes I had seen earlier raised her hand. I saw her smacking on some gum.

"Charity," I said in my 'dumb' voice.

"Yeah?" She said, voice innocent. Maybe she was just stupid.

"Gum out."

"Ohh." She said, and walked over to the trash can and spit it out.

"Harley Donahugh?" A thin boy with light brown eyes and shoulder length brown hair raised his hand.

"Winston Einstrom?" A boy with sunken blue eyes and blonde hair in a foehawk raised his hand. He had a blue shirt on.

"Kendall Greene?" A small girl with hazel eyes and dirty blonde hair raised her hand. I nodded, and I soon as I did, she sneezed.

"Gesunteit. Jaime Ingle?" A small boy with hysterical blue eyes and auburn hair raised his hand. The other hand's fingers moved, as if playing a piano.

"Sofi Incas, I got you…" I said, checking her name off.

"Percy Jackson?" I said. No one responded. I tried again, "Percy Jackson?"

Winston smirked and shoved the kid next to him. "Here!" The kid shouted. He was the kid with black hair and green eyes. He seemed a little distracted. ADD, I bet.

"Michael Leerman?" A gangly African American boy with glasses raised his hand.

"Jack MaCaller?" A sandy blonde haired boy with droopy brown eyes raised his hand.

"Tonia Persaud?" A thin girl with downy red hair, light blue eyes, and a feather in her hair raised her hand.

"Destiny Sabers?" An African American girl with cornrows raised her hand.

"Lenny Vanderbaum?" A redhead raised his hand.

"Umm… my name's Ginger."

"Ok, Ginger," I said, laughing to myself. "I'll make note of that."

Brring Brring

The bell rang and the class left. I hope I would get to know these kids better this year, you know, make a difference in their lives, one by one. As the students filed out, I noticed someone still here, head on the desk.

"Umm, class is over." The boy didn't stir. Percy, I think it was.

"Percy? Wake up." I rapped on his desk and he shot up, startled.

"Woah!" he yelped. "Sorry, bye." He scrambled out. Hmm… Something weird.

**Sorry guys, this chapter kinda sucked. **


	3. Chapter 3

Charity Berger

Period 1

Ok. So I was walking to my 1st period architectural design class (Yes, I'm not dumb, I just look that way) when I saw her. A tall girl with pretty blonde curls was walking in front of me. I hope her face wasn't ugly. I tapped her on the shoulder and she turned around.

"Yes?" She asked, analyzing me.

Yep, definitely not ugly. Her skin was goldeny and her eyes were a startling grey.

"Hi, I'm Charity Berger. Who might you be?" I asked politely.

"Annabeth Chase. Pleasure." She said briskly.

"New here, or a freshman?" I asked.

She gave me a look, as if to say, 'what do you think?'

"Sorry, had to ask. Where you headed?" I peered over at her schedule.

"Architectural Design. You?" She enquired.

"Same!" Her eyes looked at me quizzically.

"I'm not dumb, I just look dumb." I stated.

"Ahh. I get that too." She agreed.

"Finally, someone who knows what it's like." I smiled.

She laughed, and we walked into the classroom together.

There, we were met by a woman with coffee skin and short black hair and blue eyes with a sweet smile.

"Choose your own seats, class, sit down." She ordered, but in a happy sort of way.

"Annabeth, over here!" I called. She saw me and walked over to where I was sitting.

I observed her making her way around the people. The way she walked was of regality. She kept her head up and back straight. She looked at everyone she passed as if she was looking into their minds.

"Have you taken this class before?" Annabeth asked, breaking me from my thoughts.

"Nah, it's my first time. I wanted to take it last year, but it was full." I told her.

"Cool. I have a job, so I wanted some background before I start to finalize my plans." She explained. Wow! She must be really good if she's already working.

"Where is it? I wanna see it when it's done." She paled.

"Oh, its nothing. Just a favor for my mom. She doesn't want people to see it because technically, I'm not even supposed to know where she is, but I do." She explained eyes downcast.

Ok then… Whatever. Just then, the teacher began to talk.

"Hello, class? Settle down please!" The teacher called.

"Hi. My name is Keila Horton, but I am Ms. Horton to you. Welcome to Architectural Design 1A." She smiled at us.

"This year, we will be studying the foundations of Architecture and will be designing a model city, then working with the Engineering class. Now, who here has designed anything before?"

Shakily, Annabeth raised her hand.

"Yes, Ms…?" Ms. Horton called on Annabeth.

"Hi. Annabeth Chase. I've designed replica Greek temples." She told her.

Thunder boomed outside, and Annabeth flinched. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, though. Strange…

"That's nice, and do you have any pictures?" Ms. Horton asked.

"No, they were built to be destroyed." Annabeth muttered.

"Ok, then. Since today is the first day, I won't do much to you, but I will let you choose your partner for our project." Ms. Horton sat down at her desk and began to read 'Architect's Journal'.

The class began to buzz.

"Hey Annabeth," I said, "Do you want to work with me?"

She smiled. "Sure!"

After we signed up, I sat down next to her as she began to put the handouts in her binder.

"So, Annabeth." I teased, poking her in the arm, "See any cute boys?"

"Well, not really, but…" She trailed off.

"I know why! You haven't seen THE hottest guy in school!" I gushed, thinking of him.

"Now, who might this be?" She asked, suddenly interested.

"Oh, just the cutest guy ever! He's…" I trailed off, seeing a glint on her left hand.

"What's this?" I asked, and grabbed her hand. On her ring finger was a tiny band with a little gem.

"Promise ring. Now you tell me about this guy, then I'll tell you about mine." She replied, and put her hand on her lap.

"Well, his name is Percy Jackson, and he's the captain of the swim team. He has green eyes and black hair, except for a random grey streak," I saw Annabeth finger her hair, almost embarrassed, "and completely unavailable." I sighed. Her eyes lit up, amused.

"Now, why is that?" She asked as if it was something to joke about.

"He has a girlfriend, and apparently, she's this California chick he goes to camp with, and they got in this accident over the summer and now they're living together." I sighed. "Good for her, getting a hunk like that."

She stifled a laugh.

"Ok Ms. Smarty-Architect, tell us about this 'promise ring' boy." I demanded playfully.

"Well," She said slowly, though smiling. "You just described him to me."

I felt my mouth form an 'o'. "That's you?" I gaped. Almost every girl wanted to be Annabeth.

"Yeah. We kinda went through some stuff this summer, and it just brought us together… More together then we thought, so we thought." She was saying, staring at her hand, fingering her ring, but just then, Sofi Incas, the most annoying girl on the planet, walked in and overheard the last part of the conversation.

"Hi, I'm Sofi Incas, and from what I've heard of your conversation, you need to talk with someone." She said bossily.

"I really don't" Annabeth began, but was again interrupted.

"Yes you do. Grief club during study hall in the library. Be there, because I wrote you down." She proceeded to walk out of the room.

Annabeth groaned, and I laughed.

"Welcome to Goode."


	4. Chapter 4

Jaime Ingle

Period 2

After the 1st period bell rang, I ran away from my History class as fast as possible. The teacher, Dr. Weiss, was the most boring man on the planet. His voice alone could put you to sleep. I was hurrying to my next class, Musical/Instrumental Study and Theory, for a reason. For some reason, Winston and Jack, the so-called Jocks at this school, made it their personal mission to torment me. I wasn't really into sports, or any physical activity for that matter, but into music. This, apparently, made me an outcast and un-cool as well as physically smaller.

I speed -walked, head down, past their lockers when I hit someone, and we both fell. After I collected my stuff off the floor, I looked at my roadblock.

He was about 5'8, which was tall, compared to my 5'4. He had black hair, medium skin, and dark eyes that seemed to stab me just by looking. 

"Uh… Hi?" He said standing and dusting himself off. He was wearing all black and had a skull ring on his finger. The eyes glinted, and I felt myself shudder.

He adjusted his messenger bag and looked at me, still on the floor staring at him.

"Do you need something?" He asked.

"No… Sorry." I said feeling embarrassed. I stood up and began to walk towards my class.

"Hey. Where are you going?" He asked coolly, not showing much emotion.

"Music." I said, trying to get away. Maybe he wanted to beat me up too. He was pretty scary.

"Same. Can you show me?" He asked. I looked at him, surprised.

"You're in music?" I asked. I didn't expect a guy like him to be in a class with a guy like me. I mean, I'm really good (not to brag) at what I do and he seems like…. Like a slacker.

"Yeah? What's it to ya?" He retorted, obviously offended. "Forget it, I can find the room myself." He stormed off in the wrong direction.

"Other way!" I called, and he stomped right past me.

"Hey! Wait up!" I yelled down the hall, and weaved around the people to catch up to him.

"Hey, dude. I'm sorry, I didn't mean it." He looked at me, then looked ahead. I didn't know what to make of that, so I took it as a sign to continue.

"I'm Jaime Ingle. Nice too meet you." I stuck out my hand for a shake. He just took a look at it and turned back forward.

"Nico DiAngelo." He continued walking.

"Here." I said as we got to the classroom.

It was a big room and had sound absorbers around the walls. Inside the room, which was filled with various instruments, tables, recording booths, and electronics, were lots of kids.

Every one in this class was here for a reason. If you were a musical genius, you were here. If you could sing, you were here. If you could edit and create tracks, you were here. That left me wondering what the new kid, or Nico, I guess, could do.

In the room were lots of kids I'd known for the past two or three years in the program.

Leo Freed: A tall, thin, pale kid with long black hair and glasses. He played the guitar and base like a pro.

Nessa Beck: A tall girl with bright blue eyes and blonde hair to the shoulder. She was an amazing singer.

Kirk Annocio: A tall, lean boy with grey eyes and curly lemon yellow hair. He played the electric fiddle.

Lenni Ray: A small girl with hazel eyes and pin-straight ebony hair to her waist. She was a little plump and was a track mixer. She also played the base, but not as good as Leo.

Evangelos Franco (Evan): A boy with apricot eyes and curly red hair. He was a really good singer.

Rosalind Shaw: An elegant girl with amethyst eyes and curly dark brown hair. She is also a track mixer, but plays the drums fairly well.

There were some other kids, but those were the only ones I knew.

As I said hi to a lot of people, Rosalind waved at me, so I walked over to her, where she was sitting with the rest of the gang.

"Hey guys! How was your summer?" I asked when I got to 'our' table.

"Great! I toured with my church choir around the country, and it was a blast." How 'bout you guys?" Nessa asked. Along with singing, her other love was God and Jesus.

"Pretty cool." Evan said absently, eyes giving an almost eerie glow. "All the kids at the London Music Conservatory, though, had funny accents." As brilliant as he was, his head wasn't exactly in the right place all the time.

"Idiot, they are in England, it's a different dialect." Rosalind said smartly. She was, after all, the brains of the group.

"No dip Sherlock!" Leo snorted. He was the sarcastic one, you could say.

I looked back and saw Nico standing in the corner alone. The rest of my guys followed my gaze.

"Whoa. Who's that?" Kirk asked, speaking for the first time that day.

"Nico Di-something. I met him in the hallway." I told them, still looking at him.

"What's he good at?" Nessa asked.

"I'm really not sure." I told her, and looking around at my friends, we shared a look, as if to say, 'is he that good?'

The bell rang, and the teacher walked in.

Neil Powers was a man with brown straight hair in a long ponytail down his back. He was mid-sized and was a cool teacher, by our standards.

"Kay. Sit anywhere. On the floor, tables, whatever." Everyone scrambled to find a seat.

"Welcome to music and blab la bla… You know the drill." Everyone laughed, and I think Nico even cracked a smile.

"This year, you will be in the composer, writer/singer, producer project. You will have one year to produce a song." He said.

"I have picked your partners. Leo, Nessa, and Lenni, Kirk, Evan, and Patrice. Jaime, Nico, and Rosalind. Anna, Silvus, and Helen. Tad, Seamus, and Fern. Ok. You may go. Ask me if you have any questions. All the booths are open." He looked at the students, before spazzing out and saying "GO!"

Nico stayed stationary as the people ran around, finding their partners and claming booths.

Rosalind and I got together and walked towards Nico.

"Hey! I'm Jaime, remember?" He nodded, and Rosalind introduced herself.

"Let's get to work, ok?" He nodded, yet again.

"I'm assuming you're the singer, right?" He nodded. It was really getting annoying.

"I also play guitar." He said. Rosalind smiled.

"Good…Good…" She murmured going into the mental state she often went into.

"I'm a pianist, so I'm the composer. I was wondering if you could sing for me so I can figure out what range?" I asked, motioning towards an open booth.

"No. I'll sing for the final recording. You write the music, I'll do the lyrics and proof them with you via email." He stated, then pulled out his iPod.

"Ok?" I said, more to myself than to him.

The bell rang, and he swiftly escaped the classroom in the rush of people.

Damn.


	5. Chapter 5

Destiny Sabers

Period 3

I am a self proclaimed beotch. I tell you, I don't take crap from nobody, I swear, if you mess with me, you get my foot up your ass. I am extremely independent when it comes to boys. As cute as they may be, they are total pigs. So, when I heard the school's 'cutest' jock, Brian King, sweet talking a girl, I had to go over and stop him. When I arrived, though, the scene was different than I thought it would be. Instead of a poor, helpless girl, I saw a strong, angry girl, slapping him in the face.

"Who do YOU think you are, trying to touch me like that?" She yelled after she slapped him, and kneed him in the crotch.

"ooh!" he winced, and fell to the ground.

"That's what you get, punk!" She growled, and kicked him in the side. She stalked off, and I half jogged to catch up with her.

"Hey. That was pretty sweet." I said, pulling up next to her.

"Yeah, I guess it was." She smiled. "Hi, I'm Thalia Grace." She said.

"Destiny Sabers," I said, "queen bitch." Thalia laughed.

"I think that would be me." She told me with mock sincerity.

"Oh really?" I asked, and we both smiled.

"Yeah. Nah, I'm just kidding, I'm only like that to sexist pigs and annoying people." Thalia said. She had mumbled something under her breath, but I didn't catch it.

"Same. Sometimes, I just wish boys would turn in to jackalopes." I said. Thalia chortled. (**a/n mix between a snort and a chuckle) **

"Believe me, it's more fun than it sounds!"

"What?" I asked, confused. Boys couldn't really be turned into jackalopes; that was the stuff of myths!

"Yeah, on a computer game…" She answered coolly.

"Ok, that's cool." I told her. I was still confused, but I brushed it off.

"Is this it?" She asked me as we arrived to the classroom. It was English.

"Yeah." I said, and sighed as we both stood facing the door, neither of us venturing inside.

"I hate English." I said. I truly did. Ever since I was a little kid, reading has always been hard for me.

"Same. It's awful." She said, crossing her arms over her silver military style jacket.

"On the bright side, cute jacket!" I said optimistically.

"Thanks… you said you'd like to turn a boy into a jackalope, right?" She asked, almost distantly.

"Yeah… Why?" I asked. She was starting to freak me out. She was staring into space and had a thoughtful look on her face.

"Oh, nothing. Sorry, I was distracted. ADHD, ya know?" She said, giving me an apologetic smile.

'Right. Let's go?" I asked.

"Sure. Kill me now, though." She moaned.

I grabbed her arm and dragged her through the door.

"Hey girl! How's it going?" I heard, and I let Thalia's arm go so I could wheel around and see who was talking.

It was one of my best friends, Tasmin Wray. She came running over to me and gave me a big hug. She was a tall, thin girl with smooth mocha skin. She was wearing her super curly hair in pigtails, and was wearing a black tee-shirt with rainbow circles on it, black jeans, and a rainbow studded belt.

"Hey Taz! I missed you!" I said after she let me go. "This is Thalia Grace. Thalia, this is Taz Wray."

"Hey." Thalia said, putting her hands in the pockets of her black cargo skinny jeans.

"I think she'll be a perfect addition to our beotch squad." I said, and Taz raised an eyebrow, scrutinizing Thalia up and down. Just by looking, Thalia honestly didn't look so badass. Wait until she opened her mouth, though.

"You a bitch?" Taz said, looking Thalia straight in the eye.

"Yeah? What's it to ya?" She said, looking awful fierce. It was actually quite humorous, if you think about it, the tiny Thalia staring down giant Taz. After about thirty seconds, Taz broke the stare down and smiled.

"She's in." She said, and Thalia gave a proud smirk.

"Cool." We all sat down in the back of the room as the teacher, Mr. Cox, walked in. He was a gangly man with frizzy blonde hair and light brown eyes.

"Hello class, this is remedial English 1. Who had taken this class before, just so I know?" He asked. His voice was slightly nasally.

Almost 75% of the class raised their hands (myself included), and I swear I heard him gulp.

"Well, that certainly shows me what I have cut out for me." He said, voice trembling. "I'll just start off where your last teacher finished."

Thalia leaned over my desk, which was next to hers.

"What does he mean?" She asked in a whisper.

"Every year, there's a new teacher." I said in a whisper. "One hasn't lasted longer than that. Something always mysteriously happens, and they leave. Last year, he got a cricket stuck in his ear, and it had to be removed. The year before that, he got hit by a Prius. These things keep happening. People are starting to be afraid of taking the job."

"Hm. I guess these things just happen, don't they. I guess it's just the fates…" She said, and stared off into space.

Immediately, as if a timer had gone off, kids just started pelting Mr. Cox with spitballs. I looked over at Taz, who was participating, and she shrugged.

"Hey, Winston told me about it, so why not?" she laughed, and continued shooting them off.

"Stop it! Stop it right now, or I'll… or I'll… Ugh! I'm telling the principal!" He squealed, and fled the room.

The kids started whooping and cheering, so I took the opportunity to ask Thalia about herself.

"So, Thalia. Where are you from?" I asked, leaning forward in my chair to face her.

"Well, it's hard to say. I move a lot, so I'm not really from one place."

"Hmm." I said. "Where would you say you where for the longest time?" I asked.

"That's easy. Long Island." She answered with a smile.

"Sweet. What ya doin in the city?"

"Oh, I came to stay with my cousin for the year. He's my only family, so my dad thought it'd be nice." She said, voice hardening on the 'dad'.

"Someone's got daddy issues?" I asked, playfully poking her shoulder. She slapped my finger away.

"You really don't want to know." She said, giving me a deadly glare.

"I guess I don't then." I said, putting my hands up in mock surrender.

"Sorry." She said, looking down, then back at me. "My family is so messed up, you don't even want to know."

For the rest of the class, we chatted about all sorts of things, from favorite bands (BVB, Greenday) to favorite colors (Black, silver), to siblings (one kidnapped one, seven very real ones). When it came to parents, though, I couldn't get her to talk.

"So, who'd ya say your cousin was?" I asked. We'd just talked about the pros and cons of eyeliner.

"I didn't. It's Percy Jackson, though. And Nico diAngelo, that new kid." I snorted.

"That kid's your cousin?" I laughed. "Is it true he blew up the band room? I thought it was a myth!"

"Nope, definitely not. I'm actually surprised he can still go here." She said, and exhaled. "Thanks for not hating me. I figured that every girl here's be a prep school Barbie."

"You wish!" I said, lightly punching her shoulder as the bell rang. "Let's go. Don't wanna be late for lunch?"


	6. Chapter 6

LUNCH!

Genny Ali

I guess you could say that I'm a loner. Maybe my appearance puts them off, but I think I'm just not very good at making friends. I don't really talk to people much, but I watch them all the time. See, I don't stalk people, I observe them.

Every day at lunch, I sit in the corner near the door where I can see the whole room and watch everything happen. For example, last year, Elmira Reid broke up with her boyfriend over a text message, Hannah Jones drank so much soda she peed her pants, then spilled water over herself to make it look like an accident. Greg Foreman and Sean Dickenson went up behind Annette Hoffman and 'harassed' her, and the principal didn't get them in trouble because they paid him for it. I see everything, and I quickly pick up the latest gossip and secrets, not that anyone knows. Everyone knows 'The Bade', though. That's my online, secret tabloid/gossip column. I feel like I'm the perfect person for this sort of job because I'm the kind of person no one would suspect.

I do want to be a serious reporter one day, though, but for now, I don't really have a choice. I mean, I have to start somewhere, don't I?

I usually sit alone, as to avoid distractions (or maybe cause no one wants to sit near the lunch monitor), so it surprised me when a new kid came up to me and sat down seeming not to notice I was there. Nico diAngelo, I think. I'd heard about this kid, but not much. He really kept a cloud over himself. All I knew was that he was Percy's cousin and he pissed off Jaime Ingle in Music.

He was wearing all black and had a skull ring on a clenched fist. He seemed to be ranting under his breath. "Persephone… dandelions… uncles… electricity… Kelp Head… school… music… Damn Mortals." I couldn't really understand all that he was saying, so I turned my head away from Charity Berger sitting on Devyn Chandler's lap, feeding him grapes.

"Sorry? Were you talking to me?" I asked, causing him too look up over his biology textbook.

"Uh, no." He said, and looked back down. What he was doing was a little strange to me.

He was looking at the textbook, then writing notes on lined paper, only they weren't in English. After a few minutes, he looked up and saw me looking at him.

"What?" He asked, putting down his pencil and looking at me.

"What… language is that?" I asked jutting a finger towards the notebook paper.

"Oh. It's Greek." He said, slightly embarrassed.

"Why would you write in a different language?"

"Well," He said, "It's easier to understand." He shrugged, and went back to copying notes.

"Wouldn't Italian be, though? I heard you're from Italy." He looked up slowly, and I swear I saw him pop his neck. When his eyes met mine, they burned with hate and sorrow all at once. I was unaware that was even possible. His jaw clenched.

"I haven't spoken Italian to anyone since my sister died. She was 13. I was 10."

"And your mom…?"

"She's dead too. Don't even ask about my dad." I opened my mouth to apologize, but he had already stood up.

"I thought this was the quiet table." He said quietly, demeanor totally changed. He sounded… vulnerable.

As he stormed out, Percy Jackson and the blonde girl, Annabeth, maybe, and that girl who joined the bitch squad, I think Thalia Grace, saw, and followed behind him.

I decided that maybe now would be a good time to put my skills to use. I slunk out and quickly followed the path they'd taken. When I heard voices, I quickly ducked behind a row of lockers.

"Nico, stop doing that. You're gonna make your knuckles bleed." A girl said softly. I quickly peeked over the edge and saw Nico being held from behind by the wrists by Percy Jackson.

Nico's only a year younger, but Percy's so much taller and probably stronger. Nico might have been 5'8 or 5'9, but Percy was definitely 5'11 or 6 feet tall.

The blonde girl, I'm just gonna call her Annabeth; put a hand on his shoulder, but he shook it off, thrashing.

"Hey Death Breath. It's not gonna bring her back." The goth girl, Thalia said.

He seemed to realize this, and as he went limp, Percy let him go. I backed into the shadows again, and I heard a growl. Slowly, I peeked out again.

"You… you killed her." Nico whispered, walking towards Percy.

"Dude, I thought we went over this." Percy responded, looking around to make sure there was no one around. "She got crushed. It…it wasn't me."

"Nico, calm down," Thalia started to say, walking towards him, but he quickly turned on her.

"You were there. You could have saved her, stopped her." Thalia backed away, hurt in her eyes.

"Nico," Annabeth said, ignoring the insanity that seemed present, with a motherly tone. "Nothing could have saved her." He broke away, and looked at them.

"I'll… I'll see you later." Nico stalked away. Percy stood facing away from me in the direction Nico went to.

"Hey, he'll come around. He always does." Annabeth put a comforting arm around his waist.

I shifted positions and Thalia looked in my direction. I backed up.

"I think… there's someone watching us." I scuttled away.

Maybe some things are too personal to put in a tabloid.


	7. Chapter 7

**ZOMG! So, school just started, and I'm taking an AP class, as a freshy, so I've had so much homework and since I have to get up at 5:45 every day, I end up falling asleep when I intend to update… I apologize for this, so I will probably be updating this on weekends only for a while. :)**

Day 2.

Period 6

Harley Donahugh

So, I had the last classes after lunch with this kid, Percy Jackson, and every class, he looked more tired and tired.

I went up to him after fifth period, you know, trying to be nice, and asked if he was ok.

"Yeah," he said, looking a little distracted, a little off. "I'm fine." He gave a small cough, and walked away, not seeming to acknowledge me.

Whatever. Some people were just like that.

I walked into my next class, Ocean Studies, and sat in the 2nd to last row, because the sat was taken by a pretty blonde girl with either blue or grey eyes. I think her name is Annabeth.

I don't really care. I'm waiting for someone else…

Sorry. Getting off track.

I sat down, and was going to turn and say hi when she got up and went to meet someone at the door of the classroom.

"Percy, hi!" She came closer, then grabbed his face.

"Perce, are you ok?" She asked, and he blinked.

"Are you tired? This is your first day without a nap since… that." He looked at her, and sniffed.

"I don't take naps. I take afternoon rests."

I sniggered. Annabeth gave him a stern look, and he sighed

"Yeah, I mean, I'm tired, but this is something totally different."

He looked at her for a second.

"Wise Girl, what are you doing in ocean sciences?"

She laughed. "Seaweed Brain, we don't have any other classed together, I figured you don't want to take architecture, though."

Weird nicknames…

The bell rang, and Percy took a seat next to Annabeth in the back, and the teacher, Mr. Jerome, walked in.

"Class, since this is an ocean sciences class, I am sorry to announce that an oil spill has occurred near Long Island."

Immediately, the class began buzzing with commentary, but as I looked back at Percy and Annabeth, he was looking at her in alarm, and it looked like he was starting to hyperventilate.

"Settle, settle." He said, and most of the kids quieted down.

"Anyways, class, since we'll be learning about that later in the year, I figured we could just learn about it now, and get it over with." Mr. Jerome smiled, and the rest of the kids finished their conversations.

"Now, kids, how many of you want to be marine biologists or oceanographers?"

Many students raised their hands, including Percy and this other kid in my homeroom, Winston.

"Who wants to be a marine or a submarine driver?"

A few kids raised their hands.

"Who is taking this class because they finished their credits already and had nothing better to do?"

I raised my hand, and so did Annabeth.

"Great, so let's get started!" Mr. Jerome exclaimed, and he began to talk about the effect the pollution was going to have on various sea creatures and such.

Behind me, I heard Percy and Annabeth talking. Actually, it was mostly Annabeth telling Percy to breathe, or calm down, or stop kicking her.

After about ten minutes, I wasn't really listening to the teacher so much as I was listening to them bicker.

"Annabeth," pant pant, "the hippocampi," pant pant, "are gonna…"

Hippo-what?

"Calm down, we'll get through this." She was saying, and from behind me, I heard the rasping of the chair on the tile.

"Mr. Jerome?" Percy said, leaning on the desk as he stood up.

Right now, Mr. Jerome was explaining the effect the oil would have on the European Periwinkle Mollusk.

"Yes, Mr…?" He said, pausing to look at Percy, as we all did.

He was looking kinda pale, and was teetering slightly, as if he was seasick.

"Jackson." He told him. "May I go to the nurse, please?" He asked, looking out at him and fiercely holding on to the desk.

"Mr. Jackson, are you sure you can't make it through the lesson?" Mr. Jerome asked. Percy closed his eyes and shook his head.

"Fine, then you may go. Harley, could you accompany Mr. Jackson to the nurses office?" Annabeth stood up.

"Mr. Jerome? Could I go?" She asked, reaching for her bag.

"Ms…" he looked to his seating chart, "Chase, why would I allow you to go if I already asked Harley to?"

Percy sat back down, and put his head on the desk.

"Sir," Annabeth said, full of sincerity, "I have to go with him. I have his meds."

Mr. Jerome stifled a laugh.

"Why can't Mr. Jackson, Perseus, right?" He looked to Percy for approval, who looked up, and groaned a weak "Percy."

"Ok, why can't Percy," he said, with quotes around his name, "manage his own medication?"

Annabeth bit her lip and walked towards the desk. She whispered into the man's ear, and he laughed.

"Since Mr. Jackson's mother doesn't trust him, you have his medication?"

The class began laughing, and both Percy's and Annabeth's faces burned.

"Is the medicine the difference between life and death?" he asked, and Annabeth shook her head.

"It would make him feel so much better…" She was saying, but he cut her off.

"I'm sure he can wait, then 20 minutes until the end of the class. Harley?"

"Yeah?" I answered, and I stood up.

"Take this boy to the nurse, and tell her that the medication for him will be there in 20 minutes."

"Yes sir."

I tapped Percy to tell him to go, but all I got was a light snore.

"Uh… I think he's asleep…" I trailed off, poking his arm.

"Damnit." Annabeth muttered.

She walked over to Percy and said something none of us could hear.

After about 10 seconds, she rubbed his back, and he jerked awake, and putting a hand to his pocket.

"Ah!" He yelled, momentarily alert, until her realized it was just Annabeth, and his eyes seemed to zone and he slumped onto the desk.

"Whoa."

"Perce," Annabeth said, and he looked to her. "Harley is gonna take you to the nurse, ok? I'll bring you your stuff later."

Percy nodded and walked over to me. I started to walk towards the door, and he just stood there.

"Come on."

He shuffled over to me, and I sort of pushed him out the door and in front of me the whole time we were walking over to the nurse's office.

"Hello?" I called to the Nurse, who wasn't at her usual place. "Nurse Jones?"

As soon as she heard me, she came bustling out of the back office.

"Who is it? Harley? Hello, dear. How are you?"

Nurse Jones is an elderly lady with curly, snowy white hair, and bright blue eyes. Her skin was a golden-y color, and she was one of those people that you can tell that she'd been pretty when she was younger.

She knows me because a bunch of times in my freshman year, I ended up in here during PE. Let's just say… I wasn't the most coordinated kid in the world.

"I'm fine, but Percy isn't." I said, pushing him in front of me. He had been dozing off in the corner.

"Percy…?" She said, studying his face. She didn't seem to recognize him.

"Percy Jackson. That kid that helped me in here after George pushed me in the pool." Her eyes widened, as if she recognized him, either from here or from somewhere else.

"Oh, right, that Percy Jackson." He looked up, and absently stuck out his hand.

"Percy Jackson, son of Po" but yawned, and he didn't bother to finish.

"His girlfriend or whatever is gonna bring him his medication after class is over. She says his mom doesn't trust him to hold onto it or something like that." The nurse nodded knowingly.

"Hello, Percy. Are you feeling bad?" She asked him, and he nodded.

"Δεν χρειάζεστε μερικά νέκταρ και Δεν χρειάζεστε μερικά νέκταρ και?" **(Did you need nectar and ambrosia?)**

She spoke to him in a language I didn't understand.

"Uh huh." He mumbled, and she led him over to the bed. After she got him to lie down, she unlocked one of her file cabinet drawers, and pulled out a yellow square and a medicine bottle.

"What's that?" I asked, pointing at the stuff she'd lain out on her desk. "Is it a… Lemon Bar?" I reached out to grab it, so I could sniff it, but she grabbed it before I could get there.

"No. This is not a lemon bar. It is a medication."

"For what?" I asked, and then thought of another question. "And what language was that?"

"First of all, it was Greek. I knew he could speak it. I'm… friends with his father." She hesitated before answering my first question. "As for what he has, I'm afraid I can't tell you. It is for him to decide to tell you or not."

She looked back, and I looked over her shoulder, to the sleeping guy in the back. There was a paper curtain, and the light from behind caused a silhouette of him to play on the surface. He was breathing, and you could see his chest rising up and down.

"Harley, thanks for bringing him. You can tell his girlfriend, if you see her, that I had what he needed." I nodded, and once again, peered over her shoulder to look at him. He was talking in his sleep, muttering nonsense, and tossing and turning. It looked almost as if he were hyperventilating. I heard him whimper, and then gasp.

"Luke!" He shouted, scaring himself awake from the noise he made. His arm was out as if he was gonna grab something.

I almost jumped, it was so loud. The people in the main office even stood up and looked over the frosted glass window to try and see.

Percy brought his hand to his chest and tried to regain his breath.

I stood paralyzed, not knowing what to do.

I heard a sniff, and looked to the silhouette. He had his knees to his chest and was beginning to shake.

I looked to Nurse Jones.

"Go. Now." She whispered, just loud enough for me to hear.

At that moment the bell rang, and I rushed out, but as I looked back, the silhouette seemed to look at me. I turned away, only to collide with Annabeth.

"Sorry." I said, but she was already inside. I turned back, and saw her go behind the curtain. Now there were 2 silhouettes, the smaller one sitting on the bed, and wrapping an arm around the other.

I walked away.

**Line**

3rd Person (aka, not Harley)

"Thanks for the ambrosia, Nurse Jones." Annabeth let Percy go back to sleep, after all, until they got the oil spill cleaned up, he would need the extra rest.

"No problem." Nurse Jones replied. "Anything for the saviors of Olympus."

Annabeth blushed.

"My father told me you'd need it. After all, with kids of the big three here, you never know, huh?"

Annabeth looked over, to the same silhouette Haley had seen. The same, calm one he'd seen in the beginning.

"You never know."

The nurse patted her on the back, and the warning bell rang.

"Here. I'll write you a note to your next class." She sat at her desk and wrote out a note. "Where are you headed?"

"AP NSL," she replied, "Piece of cake."

"I'll call you down to wake him up. You know how the Achilles kids get."

Annabeth nodded, and began to walk out of the nurses office.

"Oh yeah, Nurse?" Nurse Jones looked back. "Your dad says you're doing a 'totally awesome' job."

"Oh, my dad… Never really matured, did he?"

**Who's her dad? **


	8. Chapter 8

**If you guessed Apollo, you're right! Oh yeah, if you guys want to see someone specific, just tell me, 'cause I'm kinda-sorta running out of ideas… Yeah.**

Norton Northdrop

After School

Hello. My name is Norton Northdrop, and I'm the manager of the Goode Swim Team. Why am I the manager, you may ask? It isn't because I'm not the best swimmer, but because the coach said that someone of my lanky size and awkward physique, I would be a hindrance to the team, and should support my school in a non self endangering way. I try to take that in a positive way, though.

Anyways, I was taking towel inventory when I saw a kid slide into the pool and begin to swim laps. I was outraged, as he wasn't following the pool rules, and galumphed over to where he was.

"Excuse me, mister, uh, this is against school policy! You have no permission to be here!" I squealed as I marched across the pool room, almost slipping a few times, even in my orthopedic traction shoes.

As I approached the kid, I rested my hands on my knees for a moment to catch my breath.

"You," I wheezed, getting my inhaler out and taking a puff, "Have no right to be in here without adult supervision."

The kid, who had been starting a flip turn into another lap of easy freestyle, stopped and glided into the wall.

"What did you say again?"

"I said, this is a pool where there must be supervision at all times. It says so on the sign by the door." I huffed, full of annoyance. This kid should really read the school rules.

"Oh, sorry man. I have dyslexia… don't read much anyways." He grinned sheepishly, "The nurse told me I could come up here anyways, though, so… yeah."

I nodded. "Still, you have to follow the rul- arg!" I yelped, as he splashed my foot.

"Dude, chill!" He teased, rolling his eyes. "Sorry for getting you wet, but enough with the rules!" he put his hands up in mock surrender.

"I'm going to have to ask you to leave," I said, hustling over to the bleachers and removing my shoe and sock. "You have no clue what you just did, I have sensitive skin! If the chlorine comes in contact with my direct skin, I could… get a deadly rash!"

He snickered, and began to pull himself out of the pool, when I saw, out of the corner of my eye, someone come in from the general entrance.

I swiveled to face the door, and it was a blonde girl, Annabeth, I think, from a bunch of my AP classes. You see, when you are as smart and physically appealing to the other gender, girls tend to follow you everywhere. I stood up, careful not to let my bare foot touch the floor. She walked right past me, and to the kid in the water. Of course, she goes for the stupid jock. Girls have such low standards these days (tsk tsk).

"Perseus Jackson, you had me worried, you… you Seaweed Brain!" She scolded, marching to the side of the pool. Wait a second, Jackson… Jackson… Percy Jackson… Percy… Purseus?

"Anna, sorry, but I told the nurse I'd feel better after a swim. Not as good as the ocean, but you know," He nudged her as he stood up and he grinned. She smiled, and gave him a kiss on the cheek, careful not to get wet.

Of course. Another girl passes by the opportunity to date me. Oh well, someday, they'll come to their senses and be begging for forgiveness.

"Mr. Jackson, excuse me, but it is still against policy for you to be here." I reminded him, marching back over to them.

Annabeth looked at me for a moment, then nodded, smiling.

"Right, I know who you are! You're the kid from Trig who kept telling the teacher that she should buy regulation pens. Nathan, right?"

I pursed my lips. "Norton."

"Hm." There was an awkward silence for a moment, then she smiled. I puffed out my chest, sure that she was going to reward me for defending the policy of the school and district. I love rules…

"You answered question 23 wrong on the homework." She said bluntly, and I recoiled.

"Oh." That kid, Jackson, was still standing there, dripping all over the floor. I was snapped out of flirt mode, and back onto manager mode.

"Miss, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. You are not permitted to be in here without a teacher's approval. And you, sir, dripping on the floor could cause serious injury to people walking without shoes with traction grips on them. Seriously, do any of you people read the rules? What are you, stupid?" I blurted out in a sudden burst of frustration.

Annabeth huffed, and rolled her eyes at me.

"No, I haven't. I have dyslexia." I blushed, and was sorry I said anything, because Jackson came towards me questioning look on his face.

"Did you just insult my girlfriend?" He stood a good 3 inches taller than me, and I was terrified. Not that I let it show, though.

"Wait a second!" I interjected, honestly surprised. "Girlfriend?"

He nodded, and I saw his fingers twitch, and assumed he was gonna go in for a punch to the face.

"Perce, calm down. I can fight for myself if I want to." Annabeth said, grabbing his hand. He struggled in her hand, trying to break free and come at me, **(a/n hehe… come at me, bro!)** but she spun him around by yanking his face and squishing his cheeks with her hands.

"Stop, now!" She commanded, and let go of his face.

"But Annabeth!" He whined, and she motioned for him to lean down to her level, and when he did, she got a little bit wet. Oh, how I wish I was that guy… I mean NO! I don't!

She whispered something to him, and he gave her a pleading look before she raised her eyebrows in some sort of authoritarian look.

He rolled his eyes, and came over to me.

"Sorry for threatening you." He said in a monotone voice, and looked back at Annabeth, who raised her blonde, perfect, NEVER MIND, eyebrows again.

"Sorry." He said again, this time with a little more meaning.

"Sorry isn't going to cut it!" I replied, brushing my arms off as if he was the dirt on them. "I'm going to have a word with the coach, so I would start maybe asking your mom to join a private swim team, 'cause you're definitely not making the team here. Don't even bother trying out." I made a _tsk_ noise. "All you rich kids are the same. Except… for me."

As I turned around and started to walk away, I heard Percy's wet feet run after me, and in about 10 seconds, his hand grasp my shoulder and turn me around.

"Now you listen here, what's your face," he growled, his hand still on my shoulder. "My mom works hard to put me through school, and you think you're so smart, but you're really not. If you _were_ so smart, like you must really think you are, you wouldn't have made 3 mistakes." I gulped and tried to pull away, but he just held on. "One, you insulted me and my family. Two, you insulted Annabeth," she rolled her eyes, "and Three, I'm here, on a swim scholarship." I mentally facepalmed.

"I'm sorry." I said, internally terrified, but externally professional. He let go, and nodded. I quickly ran away, as fast as I could with orthopedic traction shoes on the wet floor. I could already feel the rash on my shoulder starting to burn.


	9. Chapter 9

**FYI, I just discovered Death Cab for Cutie, and am in LOVE! Awesome music!**

1 Hour After School

Grief Club

Sometimes, when a child goes through some sort of traumatic experience, they must go through intense therapy, or even just a mild bout of therapy. That is what I do. My name is Dr. Bambara, and I am a therapist. More specifically, though, I am a grief counselor.

The club was scheduled to begin in 10 minutes, giving each of the precious children a chance to fill their tummies with something nutritious and delicious. This club was mandatory, though, and to track down the little angels who might try and escape (all of them), I issued a pass to the library 10 minutes before the final bell, saying they'd won some sort of prize, and had the librarians lock them in the TV studio. It wasn't cruel or even torture, but I was truly trying to help them. They didn't know the benefits of talking about their feelings.

I twisted the marriage rings around my fingers, with a little difficulty. I have gained a couple pounds since my wedding, and my dear hubby, bless his soul, has as well. The hand on the clock on my wall went to the 2:20, so I pushed myself out of my chair and walked to the door of my office, which is where I would _prefer_ to have my meetings, seeing as it was a very homey office, full of couches, popcorn, and hot cocoa, but my little assistant Sofi, to whom I owe a lot for her assistance, found a few more poor souls that need my guidance.

I went up to my mirror, and grabbed my can of hairspray. I shook it a few times, then sprayed some on my hair and shaped the blonde mass into its usual style- a scoop at the end, but volume-ized at the top.

As I was going to open my door, I heard three sharp raps.

"Come in!" I trilled, and in sauntered Sofi, her cute little shoes making squeaking noises on the floor.

"Dr. Bambara," she pouted, sticking out her bottom lip, "The kids are going crazy in there! Some kid looks like he's shooting lasers at me through the glass! It's really scary!" She sniffed, and I pulled her into a hug.

"Now honey boo," I comforted her, patting her soft hair, "When we get in there, you tell me which one of those meanies is scaring you, and I'll make sure it won't happen again." I gave her another reassuring smile, and she grinned back.

"Sweet-o burrito! Let's go!" She giggled, and pulled me behind her as she skittered down the winding hallways to the Library.

When we got there, I gave a warm smile to the librarian, an elderly man with a white goatee and skinny jeans paired with a Hawaiian shirt, and the assistant, an equally elderly woman who was overweight and with unflattering clothing. I sighed, realizing that not everyone could be as classy and stylish as me. Despite the obvious differences between me and them, though, it is always important to respect everyone for who they are, at least, that's what I teach the students.

As Sofi and I reached the TV studio, I right away scanned the group of kids we had this year. The first person that caught my eye was a dashing young man with a full head of black hair (something I wished hubby still had) and a rather athletic looking body. Man, I could take that boy, spread some butter on him, and eat him up! I think I've seen him around before, though, with Sofi and some Ginger running around causing some sort of ruckus.

There was a slim blonde girl, long legs and all, with tan skin and big smile. All in all, she looked like she stepped out of one of those fancy teenage magazines. Why, that was me about 20 years ago. I could say a couple of things about those shorts she was wearing, though, and about that fabric draped over her she thought would pass for a decent shirt. Not everyone, I reminded myself, could be as classy and wise about their decisions as me. She was putting her pretty little hands all over that one boy, the one with the hair. Hmm, now I saw darling Sofi over there eying that same boy… This ought to be good in its given time.

There was another boy I hadn't seen before. He was a little smaller, and a little too skinny for my taste, 'cause you know country girls, we like a little meat on our men. He was pale, once again, an unattractive trait, but did have a rather attractive mop of black or brown hair, though a little long. He was glaring daggers at my little sweetie, and I made it a mental note to be sure and ask him about it. Surely, though, he was just another angst-y teenager that had a crush. It was hard not to have a crush on my little helper; she's just so darn adorable. The black clothes were a little too much, though, and it wasn't helping much that he was fiddling with a notebook and pencil in the corner.

The last girl I hadn't seen before was dressed in a defensive outfit, and seemed to be causing discomfort and stress to the boy sitting in the corner. She was small and thin, though she wore pants far too big for my taste. Her hair was awful, as if she'd cut it herself, and the only thing particularly attractive about her to me were her eyes. Even from the distance, her eyes stood out as she saw me. I nodded, as to acknowledge her, and she walked over. She came up close to the glass and squinted, pointed at me with her right hand, and stuck up her middle finger with the left. I gasped; appalled that anyone would even do that to a teacher.

Beside me, Sofi tutted.

"She's a rotten egg, Dr. Bambara. Rotten, I tell you." She gave me a sympathetic look and patted my hand.

I turned to her immediately, and said, "Now, let's get this show on the road, shall we?"

She nodded eagerly, and following my lead, we made our way into the TV studio.

"Hello Darlings!" I announced my own entrance, throwing open my arms as if welcoming a hug. Sofi scuttled in behind me, almost cowering. If that little emo boy was scaring her, he'd be sorry… not to be mean.

"Hey, Lady," The unattractive girl with the horrible manners came at me like a bull. "What gives you the right to trap us in here, you crazy little bi-muasdg!" The tall blonde girl quickly slapped a hand over the other girl's mouth and smiled at me apologetically.

"Ma'am, I'm sorry about my friend, she has no tact." She removed her hand from the littler girl's mouth, and held her by the shoulders instead.

"Clearly," Sofi muttered from behind me, and Blondie shot her a pointed look.

"She does have a point, though. What you did is against school policy, which I was advised to study and to report any discrepancies to the main office." 

I sighed. Blondie had to be a wise-ass too.

"Ms…"

"Chase."

"Ms. Chase," I began, "this was not done out of cruelty. Au contraire, it was done to your benefit. Some students are just opposed to help."

She huffed, and I clapped my hands to gain everyone's attention.

"Ok, everyone, let's sit on the floor in a circle, ok?" The kids grumbled, but they slowly made their way into a nasty oval. Not even a circle, an OVAL.

When they were all seated, this was the order:

Me

Sofi

Glasses Kid

Droopy Ginger

Ms. Chase

Attractive Tall boy

Unattractive, Tactless girl

Indian Girl

Emo boy

Immediately, I made a decision that I knew would benefit the whole group.

"Ok, here it goes. We will have assigned seats."

When I was done, this was the order:

Me

Sofi

Attractive Tall boy

Droopy Ginger

Ms. Chase

Indian Girl

Unattractive, Tactless girl

Glasses Kid

Emo boy

There. That was better.

After that was done, I pulled everyone's individual personal files/records out of my briefcase, which was purple and adorned with periwinkle butterflies. Now, I'd usually go for something a bit more… distinguished, but when someone gives you a gift (wink wink cough cough nudge nudge Sofi), you should accept it.

Some students had small files, some medium, and one massive.

"Perseus… Jackson?" I read the name off the massive file, and the Tall Attractive boy, who seemed bummed at being separated from Ms. Chase, raised his hand.

"Percy, actually." He corrected, and I made a mental note of it.

"Hmm." I handed him the file, careful not to spill any papers that seemed to be pouring out of the measly file folder.

The next files were considerably smaller.

"Nico DiAngelo?" The name was printed neatly across the top of the folder, and the Emo boy raised his hand next to me.

For such an elegant name, this boy had no taste.

"Here." I handed him the nearly-empty file.

The next file was average sized, not much except for attendance records.

"Lenny Vanderbaum?" The ginger raised his hand.

"You can just call me Ginger, if you want." I almost choked on air.

"You know, that is a derogatory term used towards red-haired people, right?" I said.

"Yeah, but it makes it easier for people to learn my name." He shrugged, and took the file from my hands.

The next file was a little smaller, and the dates were a little fuzzy, like water had been poured on them.

"Thalia Grace?"

Unattractive Tactless girl reached over to grab her file. It is a pity, really, that she has such a… graceful name, but it describes nothing about her.

"Tania Persaud?"

The Indian girl reached over and silently grabbed her file.

"Ok then, Annabeth Chase. Yes Ms. Chase, this is your file." I inspected it, and then put my hand holding the file towards her. She rolled her eyes at me, and I took it back, inspected it some more, then handed it to her.

"Michael Leerman?" Specs reached to me and grabbed his file, which was another medium file.

"Thank you, Ma'am." He whispered, and I gave him an approving smile. For this boy, this was simply a formality. He'd been in the club for 3 years. I don't know why he kept coming back, but I think it was mostly because he had a little thing for my darling little Sofi. I could see it clear in my mind… a little twi-hard worthy fight between Emo boy and Specs over Sofi.

"Ok, guys and dolls, lets scoot a little closer and have a quick chat." Grudgingly, everyone scooted closer, except for Sofi, who popped up and went into her backpack, and came back with a tupperware.

"I made brownies!" She exclaimed, and passed everyone a brownie.

"Thank you Sofi, for providing snacks." I praised her, and she popped back into her seat between me and Persu- I mean Percy.

"Now, who would like to tell the group why they are here?" I asked, and no one raised their hands.

"Come on, now," I prodded, "don't be shy!"

Frustrated, I closed my eyes and pointed in the general direction of Tania, the Indian girl. I opened my eyes and feigned surprise.

"Whoa! It looks like it's your turn!" She rolled her eyes, and sat up a little straighter, removing her hands from behind her, where they'd been propping her up.

"Well, I was talking to my friend Kendall, telling her about this funeral I went to over the summer, when this psycho chick comes out of nowhere and gives me this pass." She spoke, putting emphasis on 'psycho chick'.

"Now, now, Tania," I scolded, "how would you feel if someone called you a psycho chick?" She exhaled loudly.

"Sorry for calling you a psycho bitch, I mean, chick, Sofi."

Sensing the tension, I decided to break in.

"Ok, who's next?" Michael raised his hand. "Yes. Michael."

"Uhh," he stammered, "Marxy died."

I gave him a concerned look, and asked, "Who was this 'Marxy?'"

"He was my Goldfish." I nodded sympathetically, and out of the corner of my eye, say Perseu- I mean, Percy gag.

"Perseu- I mean, Percy, are you alright?"

He nodded.

"Yeah, I've just got a thing about dead fish… not so compatible."

"So Michael," I continued, looking at Specs, "How did that make you feel?"

He furrowed his eyebrows, as if in deep thought.

"Sad?"

"Moving on," I said, and pointed to the Ginger kid. "You. Why are you here?"

He smiled, at me, and shrugged his shoulders. 

"I honestly have no idea. I was punching my best friend Paul, when she came up and dragged me away, claiming I had some sort of inner turmoil." Sofi gave a nervous giggle, and I sighed.

"Do you believe there is any reason to stay, Ginger?" I asked in a condescending tone. He held up a finger, telling me to wait, and he leaned in front of the other two sitting between him and Thalia.

"Would it make you feel any better if I stayed?" He asked, and I swear she gagged.

"You make me want to puke, not just because of your stench, but because of your male superiority complex, which is wrong." She sniffed, and he leaned back, acting offended.

"Hey! Are you saying that my opinion is wrong?"

"Yes."

"Ok, I'm out!" he announced, and popped out of his seat and bounded out of the room.

"Now that that's been taken care of, who'd like to go next?" I looked around, and felt the urge to pick Perseu- I mean, Percy.

"Persu- I mean, Percy. Would you like to go next?" I smiled at him, expectantly, but he just leaned back on his hands.

"Nah, that's fine. You can go." I gave a little laugh. His cooperation would ensure the cooperation of the rest of the group, so I didn't want to cause an unnecessary argument.

"Mr. Jackson," I told him folding my hands together, "It was more of a statement than a question."

"Uh, ok, I guess. What do you want me to tell you?" I hadn't really gotten that one before.

"Tell me what makes you grieve?" He gave me a look, and I felt compelled to further expand upon my answer. "What makes you sad?"

"That's a tough one. Actually, there are a few things: People's parents not claiming them, people dying, more specifically, my friends dying, people getting abused, people committing suicide, and a bunch more." Sofi and I gaped at him, openmouthed.

"I can keep going, if you want." He added, looking totally innocent.

"No, no," I brushed him off hastily, "That is quite enough." I shuddered. "Who would like to go next? Ms. Chase?"

She pursed her lips, and after a moment, relaxed a little. "The fact that my dad cares for his new family more than me, by best friend, no, brother, betrayed me, and in the end, died, and that I can't walk into the Empire State Building without wanting to puke." She looked up from her hands, which she had been staring at the whole time, and her eyes were cold and grey, hard, and frankly, I was a bit terrified. These two's stories were a bit… greivier than others I'd gotten in the past.

"Thank you Ms. Chase."

Still, people weren't interested. Emo boy was writing something down in that little book of his, Specs was zoning out in the direction of Sofi, Percy was staring at the ceiling, and the Indian girl was absently picking at her nail polish.

"Ms. Grace!" I boomed, trying to sound cheerful, "It's your turn!"

"Whoop dee doo." She smirked, and tilted her head back. "Where should I start? My brother was kidnapped, the only person I ever loved killed himself, my mom's dead, and my dad is a jackass. Oh yeah. My stepmom dropped a statue on my legs. How fun? Not fun."

"Ooh! You said a bad word!" Sofi gasped, and Ugly girl rolled her eyes.

"So what?" She shrugged,

"It's against the rules!" Sofi tittered.

Good girl, standing up for the rules.

"Screw the rules." Tactless girl grinned, and I interjected myself into the conversation.

"Hey! Hey! We have one more person to go!" Emo boy groaned from beside me, and I leaned over to give him a hug. He stiffened, and I quickly let go.

"Nico, right?" He nodded. "It's your turn!"

He just stared up at me from under his hair, which brushed his eyelashes.

"Why don't you go? You must be in this club for a reason." I exhaled, then smacked my lips.

"Mr. Jackson already tried that. Nico, please tell us." I said calmly, but firmly. He gave me an intense glare back, and I nearly shuddered.

"I say no." He countered. I could already see him stiffening up.

"I say I'm gonna call your mama if you don't go Mr. DiAngelo." His shoulders dropped.

"You can't. She's dead." His voice remained cold and steady, not even a break in his voice.

"Oh, well I'm sorry to hear that," I responded, "Then I'll just have to call your father." His hands relaxed.

"He might as well be dead." Man, this kid really had it rough.

"You know what?" He said, and his voice was suddenly full of emotion. "I'm done with this crap. I'm out." And with that, he stood up, grabbed his backpack, and stormed out, notebook in hand.

Purseu- I mean, Percy, slowly got up, and adjusted his jeans.

"Annabeth, I guess I'd better go after him. I'm the only one here who can drive."

Ms. Chase nodded, and Sofi popped up.

"But Percy, you have a commitment to the club!" She whined. I'd have to talk to her about that later. Whining was quite an unattractive quality in a young lady.

"Sorry, but family comes first." He shrugged, and gave a hand to Ms. Chase, who then walked over to the Ugly girl and gave her a hand.

"Yeah. Family first, bitches!"

"What do you mean, family?" Sofi asked, whining twinge still in her voice. Man, I really had to talk to her. It was getting annoying quickly.

"I mean that he's family, and so is Thalia." We all gave him a perplexed look. "My dad has 2 brothers. Thalia is the daughter of his younger brother, and Nico the son of his older brother."

"Oh." Sofi's cheeks reddened, and Percy reached down and slung his backpack over his shoulder.

"I'm out. Bye. Thanks for the brownies!" He left with the 2 girls on his trail.

Indian girl stood up and brushed her butt off.

"I'm leaving. I only actually showed up because Jackson was super hot, but since he's gone, I've got better crap to do. It's naptime." She grabbed her bag, and pranced out in high heels.

"I guess I'll leave too, unless, of course, you want me to stay." Specs looked out from under thick frames. Both Sofi and I shook our heads, so he stood up and dragged himself out of the room.

I can't wait until next session.


	10. Chapter 10

**Wednesday Morning **

I looked down at my recently manicured nails, then back at my girls. We called ourselves the 'A-List', and we kinda ran the school… behind administration, of course.

"Girls…" I said, surveying my friends, or allies, which would be a more fitting term. "We've got a situation. A 100 degree HAWT situation."

Next to me, Jhanvee nodded.

"Tania," She said, putting a hand on my arm, "It's more like a 400 degree situation."

All around our table, straightened hair flopped and perfectly glossed lips cracked a smile.

"I'll have to agree with you, Jhanvee," added Kelli, taking a clip out of her back pocket and pining back a loose strand of blonde, "It's a huge situation."

"I'm not saying it's not," Charity added, blinking her mascara-drowned eyelashes slowly, "but if the situation is what I think it is, I'm thinking it's not the best idea."

I rolled my eyes. "Sweetie, when it comes to boys, the A-List is never not the best idea."

Charity sighed. "So we are talking about a boy."

Kelli tutted. "Of course it's about a boy. What else would it be about?"

"Percy Jackson, of course! He's not a boy, he's a man!" Jhanvee gushed. I smirked at my two friends naïve nature, and looked to Charity, who was pursing her lips and had a worried expression.

"What's wrong?" I asked, and she took a deep breath.

"He has a girlfriend." She looked around the circle, and we all broke out in almost simultaneous laughter, except for Charity.

"When has that stopped us before?" I asked, almost in disbelief. Charity was the one that established the girlfriend rule.

"Never!" Jhanvee interrupted, and Kelli smiled, nodding her head quickly and excitedly.

"No, I know, but I actually met her, and…" she trailed off, and I nudged her.

"And what?"

"And she's actually pretty cool." She looked up at us, embarrassed. The laughter was gone, and it was dead silent, aside from the background noises of the cafeteria patrons.

None of us had ever hung out with anyone else other than each other.

The other two girls looked kind of lost, and Charity looked guilty. I decided, after about a minute, to break the silence.

"So. What do you suppose we do about that?" I asked coldly, my expression blank.

"Well, I think you guys should meet her." Charity admitted in a quiet voice that I rarely heard from her.

"Girls?" I said, looking for confirmation on my other friends (or allies) faces. They looked to each other, and Kelli broke the stare.

"We think… it might be nice to meet this girl. We could… invite her to the Friday night girl's night." Jhanvee nodded.

"Really?" Charity looked relieved.

"You guys sure you want this?" I asked, shocked that the other two had actually gone along with it.

"Yeah, I mean, what's the harm of one sleepover?" Jhanvee reasoned, and Kelli swiftly agreed.

"Totally!" I pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Ok. I'll talk to… what's his girlfriends name?"

"Annabeth." Charity supplied.

"Ok. Tomorrow, I'll ask Annabeth to join us for lunch. Next time we see her, I'll ask about the sleepover. OK?"

Charity looked relieved, and the other two looked ecstatic at even hanging out with someone else.

**Thursday, lunch time**

"Hey… You're Annabeth, right?" she was the girl hanging around Percy and those other two goth kids.

"Yeah?" She said, turning around and detaching his hand from her waist, as he had been pulling her close to him at the sight of me. I came closer, then slapped Percy in the face.

"Gods Damnit!" He exclaimed, (he said God, as in singular, right?) as a teacher passed.

"Lunch Detention, Mr. Jackson. In the security office." The teacher grabbed Percy's hood and dragged Percy down the hallway.

"You bitch!" The goth girl exclaimed, and a passing teacher grabbed the hook on her backpack.

"Lunch detention, Ms. Grace, now."

I looked at the other goth boy, who rolled his eyes at me (the nerve!) and shuffled away, taking a pause to jot something down in that ugly little notebook of his.

"What'd you do that for?" She exclaimed, and I put a hand on her shoulder.

"I just wanted to clear up your lunch schedule so that you can spend it with my friends and me." I smiled, and she narrowed her eyes at me.

"Come on, let's go." I took her hand (A ring? Purity ring) and pulled her down the hallway (although she resisted), glancing at her outfit. She was wearing a navy v-neck, a pair of skinny jeans, and black converse.

It could use a little work, because if she was gonna hang out with us, she had to dress a little better. She'd stick out, I noted, getting closer to the table where the rest of the girls were. Charity was wearing a floral tank-top and a pair of shorts, Jhanvee was wearing a vintage dress with gold accent jewelry, and Kelli was wearing a jean skirt with a peasant blouse. I was wearing a tight dress with 4 inch wedges, and seeing Annabeth next to me made her seem horribly underdressed. (Or me overdressed, but I prefer the former.)

"Girls, I brought our little guest to join us for lunch!" Annabeth waved, still with a confused expression on her face, and the girls waved back.

"Hey, Annabeth," Charity said, and Annabeth brightened a little.

"Hey. So, what's up, guys?" Annabeth asked, sitting down.

"Hmm. Nothing much, just chilling." Answered Kelli, picking at the salad in front of her.

"Oh." Annabeth looked embarrassed,

"So, girls," Jhanvee stated, putting down her food and slapping her hands on the table, "Let's talk. What did you think of Molina's dress on Friday at Jared's party?"

"I think she looked like the Norwegian fish she is." Kelli snorted, and I shot her a pointed look, quickly shutting her up.

"Girls, we don't talk like that in front of guests. Why don't we ask Annabeth what she thought of it." We all looked to Annabeth just as she was about to take a bite of a sandwich. She didn't respond, so I touched her shoulder.

"What? Oh, sorry, I zoned out, you know, ADHD." She shrugged. "What was the question again?"

"What did you think of Molina's dress at Jared's party last weekend?"

"Oh. I wasn't there." We looked at each other. She wasn't even invited to Jared's parties?

"Wait, were you not invited?" Charity asked, voicing the question running through our minds.

"Oh, I was, but Percy and I had other plans." She smiled, and Charity's mouth formed an 'o'.

"Does it have anything to do with…?" Charity asked wagging her eyebrows. Annabeth nodded excitedly.

Jhanvee, Kelli, and I exchanged confused looks.

"What are you two talking about?" I asked, pursing my lips. I was supposed to be the one that knew all the secrets.

"Well, last Friday, while you guys were all at a party, I got this." She held out her hand and on it was the ring I'd felt earlier. It didn't look like a purity ring, though. It was a tiny gold band with a tiny little diamond to match. Wait…

"Oh my God… he proposed?" She shook her head, as to say, 'so so.'

"No, promise ring, but just as cool." I nodded absently, thoughts whirring in my head. Maybe she wouldn't be so bad to have at a sleepover.

"Hey, Annabeth," I scooted a little closer to her on the lunch bench, as did Charity on the other side of her. Jhanvee and Kelli leaned forward, so there was one of us on either side of her. "How'd you like to come to a sleepover at my house this Friday?"

She exhaled, then waited a second before answering. "Sure?"

**Ok guys, especially you rabid fangirls: I'm doing a NICO-Centric one next… any preferences on what-about?**

**Thanksss :D**


	11. Chapter 11

**It's been a while…**

Hannah Lee

Friday Afternoon

I come from a stereotypical Chinese family. I study hard and I practice the piano every day after school, so you can imagine my surprise when in the middle of my Moonlight Sonata, I hear shouting. Instantly, I freeze, and stop playing.

"Dude, why not? Annabeth's gone on Friday, and I'll be lonely!" A tall boy with black hair came into the music room, followed by a slightly shorter one, also with black hair.

I realized the shorter one was in my music class.

"No. I don't want to hang out with you," he answered, obviously irritated. "What about Thalia?"

"She's a girl, and plus, she's hanging out with those two girls from her English class," The tall boy pouted, and the smaller one shrugged indifferently.

"I really don't care. Why don't you go play a videogame, or something?"

"Because," the tall boy said, "they aren't any fun if no one plays with you!"

"Why don't you ask anyone else to play with you?" the small boy smirked, and for a second, the tall one froze.

(As a side note, I couldn't believe that they hadn't noticed me.)

"Because I want some cousinly bonding time, that's why!"

"Okay… That's too bad, I guess, 'cause I'm not playing your stupid, technological, new-fangled games." The smaller one walked over to one of the recording booths, grabbed a guitar, and was about to shut the door when the tall boy provoked him once more.

"What else are you doing tonight? It's not like you could get a date?" The small boy put down the guitar and scanned the room, his eyes resting on me. He smiled, and it looked a little out of place, nonetheless, but it was a definite change.

I think I knew where this was going.

"In fact, Percy," small boy walked over to me, (the tall boy, Percy, just noticing my existence) "I do have a date tonight." He smiled at me, and found my name on the folders. "I'm going on a date with Hunna."

"Hannah," I whispered.

"With Hannah," He rephrased.

"Ok, then, Miss. 'Hunna'," Percy said, putting air-quotes around my mispronounced name, "you have fun with this kid. Life of the party, I tell ya."

I gave him a nervous smile and wave as he walked out of the room.

"Thanks, Hannah," the boy said, sitting down on the opposite side of the piano bench. "I'm Nico."

"Nice to meet you, Nico."

"You're in my music class, right?" He asked, twisting the ring on his finger.

I nodded.

We sat there in awkward silence for a couple minutes.

"So… You don't actually have to go on a date with me if you don't want to. I just don't wanna hang out with Percy, that's my cousin, tonight."

I gave him a look. What was that supposed to mean, I mean, does he wanna go on the 'date' with me or not?

He seemed to get my look.

"No, no, no, I didn't mean it like that," he said, looking slightly panicked. "I just mean, I'm not gonna force you to do anything you don't want to, 'cause, I mean, it's not like you're not nice, but I really don't know you and…" He kinda shrugged. I got the feeling he didn't usually talk much.

"It's fine. We can, if my parents say yes. Also, it doesn't have to be a date. We can just be friends," I suggested, honestly excited of doing something other than math homework on a Friday night.

"Ok. What time should I pick you up, I guess?"

"I don't know. I'll call you."

Nico nodded. "You'll need my phone number."

I nodded. "Ok." I gave him my phone number and he gave me his. "Can I text you?"

He shook his head. "No cell phone."

"Ok. I'll call you then."

"Ok." He left, holding my phone number in his hand.

I kinda sat there in a daze. Did I just get asked out on a date? Wait, did I ask him to ask me on a date? I went back to playing the piano, this time, playing something totally different, something of my own imagination.

**Around 6**

I asked my parents, and they said it was alright, as long as they met him, and he seemed like a nice guy. That scared me a little, though, because his clothes didn't exactly portray him as a nice person. When I saw him in class on the first day, I thought he would be hanging out with the other hard-core metal players in our class, J.C. and Peter, but he was just standing alone in the corner. I was kinda scared. Actually, I'm kinda scared of lots of things.

I called him up, and on the second ring, a woman's voice broke through.

"Hello, Jackson-Blofis residence."

Blofis? As in that teacher?

"Hi, this is Hannah Lee. Is Nico there?"

The woman squealed.

"Oh my gods! Nico actually talked to a girl!" The woman sounded so excited, maybe it was his mom. It sure sounded like my mom when my brother got into MIT.

Wait… gods? Was his mom in a… cult? Hopefully he won't bring that up to my parents.

"NICO! THERE'S A GIRL ON THE PHONE FOR YOU!"

Suddenly, I heard a click.

"Hello?" I heard Nico's voice over the phone.

"Hi, Nico, It's Hannah." I bit my lip, hoping he'd remember.

"Right. Hannah. Are we still on?"

"Yeah. How about 7? Is that ok?"

"It's fine." I gave him my address and he hung up.

I hope that tonight won't be as awkward as that conversation was.

**Around 7 **

The buzzer in my apartment went off, so I opened the door, allowing Nico to enter the building, and waited about a minute before I heard the knock on our door. I smoothed back my hair and answered it, and when I saw him, I was shocked.

He'd really cleaned up. He had on a black button-up and black skinny jeans with a pair of black converse sneakers, with a jacket bundled up in hand. He still had his ring on and there was a gold hoop in his ear I hadn't noticed before. Although he wasn't the image my parents had of a boy taking me out on a date, he looked more like it than he had after school today.

"Hi, Hannah," he said, standing in the door frame. We both looked at each other, not sure whether to hug or shake hands, or fist bump, or whatever. Instead, he gave me a small high five. After that, there was an 'awkward silence', as some would say, so I ushered him into the living room where my parents and grandma were waiting.

"Mom, Dad, Grandma, this is Nico." He went over to my father first and shook his hand, then to my mother, who was standing next to him, then to my grandma, who was sitting watching TV in the recliner across the room.

"Hi, nice to meet you." He said, and then came over to stand next to me.

"So, you are going to take Hannah on a date?" asked my dad, motioning for Nico to sit down across from his place on the couch, where two kitchen chairs had been set up.

"Yes sir."

"Do you plan on being romantic?" Nico looked like a deer caught in headlights.

"I don't know…"

The two of them had a sort of staring match before my mother broke the silence.

"Would anyone like some refreshments?" she asked, disappearing into the kitchen and returning with a pot of tea, some Oreo cookies, and a half eaten carton of Thin Mints we bought from the little girl in 4D.

"No thank you, Mrs. Lee." Nico said, though my grandmother looked up from the TV to argue.

"You, come here!" She commanded, and he got up, and walked over to her. "Give me your arm." He lifted his arm, and she grabbed it, her thumb reaching around his wrist to touch the middle finger.

"This boy is too skinny." He gave her a half smile.

"My aunt says the same thing." Grandma _tsk_ed and shook her head.

"Give him some of those scout-guides cookies. I don't know what those little girls do for camping in the city, but they sure are good bakers."

"Thanks, but no thanks. I'm not really hungry."

"My mother looked like she was about to protest, but I shot her a pleading look.

"Make sure she's back by 10:00, ok?" my mom asked, putting down the tray and grabbing the ancient camera she has off the mantle.

"Yes, Ma'am." Nico said. He saw my mom pull out the camera, and looked at me, for the 3rd of 4th time that night with confusion.

"I am going to take a picture of you to put on the mantle," she told him, and immediately, I felt a blush rise to my cheeks.

"Mom, you didn't do this for Kevin!" I motioned towards the empty mantle.

"When Kevin goes out on a date, I'll do this for him too," she said firmly. Kevin is 23. If he hasn't been on a date yet, I doubt he ever will.

I rolled my eyes and gave Nico a shrug, which he returned.

My mom handed Dad the camera, which he took from her, and went over to Nico and I, pushing us closer together. My dad just scowled as my mom put his arm around my shoulders. Nico tensed, then relaxed. I guess he wasn't used to being close to a girl he didn't like. After all, he was only doing this to get out of hanging out with Paulie, or Peter, of whatever.

I don't really mind that he doesn't like me, though. I'm glad that he even offered to still go on the 'date' with me.

"Ok, I'll take it on three. One… Two… Three!" The flash from the camera momentarily blinded me, and I blinked a few times to get my vision back on track.

"You can see the pictures when you bring her home," my mom smiled, handing me my satchel and sweater, and ushering Nico and me out the door.

As the door slammed behind me, I looked at him and smiled.

"Sorry about that… My mom can be a bit overbearing, as can my grandma, and my dad…" I trailed off, and he breathed a laugh.

"It's fine." We walked out of my apartment and towards the subway, which was three blocks over.

"So…" I asked after a long silence, "Where are we going?"

"I was thinking we'd go to this little café I found a couple weeks ago, nothing fancy, just kinda homey."

I nodded, and followed him underground. He told me which train we'd need to get on, and I complied, following close behind him as the rush of people got off and people surged on.

As we got on, all the seats were taken by people that obviously needed them more (aside from that guy in that nice suit; he could've given up his seat.) We both put a hand on the pole as the train started off, first slow, then getting faster. Through the clear glass on the door, you could see the people becoming blurs as we zipped by, and the graffiti on the other turning into a mix of faded colors and squiggles.

The train stopped to let people off, and I looked to Nico to ask whether we were getting off or not. He shook his head, so I stayed in my place, deciding that if he wasn't gonna sit, neither was I. As more people got on, I clung to the pole, and to my purse. The doors closed, and the train began to move again.

Suddenly, a man rose from his seat in the shadows of the train's corner.

"Hey. Anybody gonna give me a dollar?" His beard was scraggly, and his clothes too big. People looked away, and so did I. The sign on the train said that there is no begging on the subway, and I intended to follow the law.

I saw his feet come closer to me, as I was staring at the floor, and was certain of his presence when the stench of his body hit me, and I froze in fear. What if he attacked me?

"You, Asian, do you have any money?" He said gruffly.

I was too stunned to speak, and was about to squeak out an answer when I felt an arm wrap around me.

'No," I heard Nico's voice, and was so relieved I almost peed my pants. "Get off at the next stop, and leave the girl alone." The man gave Nico a weird look, then laughed.

"Ha ha. Kid, you think that I'm gonna listen to you?" He scratched his beard, then took a step closer.

"Yeah, I do." Nico pushed me behind him, and gave the man a death glare, and I think I heard the man squeak.

The train came to an abrupt stop, and the man stumbled out along with a large group of people. Until he was out of sight, Nico kept his arm around me, and wouldn't let go. When he felt it was safe, he let go, but for the rest of the ride, he seemed extra vigilant as to what was going on.

At the 5th stop, we got off, and he led me up the stairs, across a few blocks, and onto a street bustling with activity. There were lots of adults and kids running around, shouting, laughing, and talking with each other. Nico pulled me to the right side of the street, and into a tiny little shop, where bells jingled as the door opened.

Inside, there were 4 little tables and 2 booths, all looking slightly worn and comfortable. The lights were warm and it smelled like… I don't know. It smelled warm too.

"Hannah, this is the best place in the whole city." He said to me, leading me into one of the tiny booths. They were meant for 3 people, at most, and the cushions were made of a couchy-sort of material. "You'll just love it."

He handed me a menu, and I looked it over. It was very Italian, with cappuccinos, biscotti, tiramisu, amaretto cake, and an American classic, Swiss Miss.

"You come here often?" I asked, as he hadn't bothered to open his menu.

"Not as much as I'd like, but often enough, I guess."

A woman came bustling out of the kitchen, and saw him. She smiled when she saw us at the table, and when she saw Nico, she pulled him into a hug.

"Nico! _Come lei è? Non l'ho visto nelle età!_" He didn't really hug her back, but she more squeezed him while he patted her on the back.

"I didn't understand that except for _visto_ and _non_," he said, laughing.

"Oh, I'm sorry, _tesoro_, I said, how are you? I haven't seen you in ages!" She gave him another hug, and he still just patted her on the back.

"I'm good. This is Hannah." He said, introducing me to the woman. She was a little overweight, and had her hair in a messy bun on the crown of her head.

"Hi, Hannah," she smiled, and gave me a hug too. "I'm glad Nico found a pretty girl to have dinner with." Nico and I both blushed.

"Why is every one so surprised I have friends?" he muttered, and I laughed.

"Maybe it's because you don't seem to be much of a social person."

He shrugged, and we both sat back down.

"Nico, cappuccino and cantucci, and for Hannah…?" The woman looked at me with pencil and pad ready.

"Uh, I think Ill have almond biscuits and a hot chocolate," I told her. I looked at Nico for approval or opinion, and he seemed to be on his own planet, you know, spaced out. (haha, PUN!)

"Okay," she said, and turned towards the kitchen. "I'll be right back."

We watched her walk into the kitchen, and as the door swung shut, I tuned to face Nico.

"And you said you only come here 'often enough'?" I asked, and he gave me another shrug.

"Uh… I guess I come more often than I thought," He said sheepishly.

"Yeah, I'm guessing that's why the lady knows your order," I smiled, and he smiled back. "So, your mom sounds nice on the phone."

He looked confused. "My mom? Oh, you mean Sally," he nodded. "She's my aunt. Yeah, she's the best." He looked at the ground for a second.

"Sorry," I said, realizing that it probably wasn't the best topic of conversation. "I just assumed…"

"Nah," he said, grabbing my hand and patting it, "common mistake." He smiled at me, "She's just about the closest thing to a mom I've had besides… never mind." He abruptly stopped.

"If you don't mind me asking," I continued, "why do you live with your aunt?

He bit his lip. "No, I don't mind. I live with her because my mom died when I was little, and my father doesn't exactly offer the best home life." He rolled his eyes. "Tell me about you," he abruptly changed the subject, clearing the mood immediately.

"Well, I live with my parents and my grandma, and my brother, Kevin. He's at college." I shrugged. "I'm not that interesting, honestly."

"You play the piano, right?" He asked, and I nodded.

"Yeah, I've played since I was three." He smiled.

"That's impressive. Classical or contemporary?" I snorted.

"Classical. My parents would throw a fit if I said the words contemporary!" I replied, and he laughed.

"Then make them throw a temper tantrum," he told me, a glint of mischief in his eyes.

"Maybe I won't," I countered.

"Maybe you should," he laughed, leaning over the table towards me.

"Then maybe I will!" My face was dangerously close to his.

"Then maybe…" I close my eyes and lean in a little farther when the squeak of the kitchen door snaps us into reality and back into our own seats.

A tray of food was set in front of us, and Nico gave an uncomfortable smile.

* * *

><p>"Well, I'll see you Monday." Nico led me to my door and put on the coat he'd been carrying. He gave me an awkward hug, then ran down the stairs, a sliver of white falling behind him. I picked it up and saw the black and white face of a girl smiling back at me next to a young Nico. I pocketed the picture and opened the door to my house; questioning the 'date' I'd just been on.<p>

Not that I'd had a bad time; on the contrary, I'd had a lot of fun. After 'the incident', nothing about the dinner had changed, we'd talked about music, school, (or lack of), and anything in between we had in common. It was nice, it was… I'm not exactly sure how to describe it, actually. It was good, though. I'll just hold on to the picture till I see him Monday. It can't be that important.

* * *

><p><strong>3rd Person POV:<strong>

Whistling, Nico got to the front door and reached into his pocket, fishing for his keys, when he realized there was a crucial piece of paper missing from his pocket. He hurriedly turned the lock and pushed open the door, rushing past Sally, Percy, and Paul watching a movie on the couch.

"Hey Nics," Percy called as he rushed by into the room they shared. "How'd it go?"

"Can't talk," he yelled back. "I've gotta find my picture."

The picture was one Hades had given him to remember Bianca by, not that he would forget. Nico wanted one with Maria in it too, but Hades wasn't about to give in to all of his son's demands.

"No, no, no," Nico muttered to himself as he looked in the pockets of his pants, the dirty laundry, his school papers, everywhere.

Furniture was thrown, sheets ripped off the bed, books (unused, of course) thrown off the shelves, clothes unfolded, and at last, a glass thrown at the wall, which shattered as he sunk to the floor.

He put his head in his hands and sat on the floor, frozen.

"Hey, Nic-oooh? You okay in here?" Percy stared at the kid on the floor.

"I lost it."

Percy coked his head to the side in confusion. "Lost what?"

"My picture."

"Perc-eeey? What happened in here?" exclaimed Sally, walking in to see the absolute disaster that'd become the bedroom.

"He lost his picture." Percy said, not making a move to comfort Nico at all.

"Which one?"

"The one of his sister."

"Ahh. Why don't we go comfort him?"

"He's dangerous. He'll bite you."


	12. Chapter 12

**Hey… First off, thanks for the nice reviews and such, and second, I don't know much about how dyslexics read or process words, so don't be offended/take much of this too seriously- Thanks : ) **

Study Hall, Monday

Georgiana Finkle

I guess if I survived the first week of school under the radar, I can get through the rest of the year unscathed. I'm actually surprised no one noticed me, since I've changed a whole lot since the end of last year. I cut off all of my honey-colored hair, which was down to my butt, stopped wearing the old-granny glasses I'd had for the last 15 years and traded them for more fashionable ones (as contacts just wouldn't do), and stopped dressing like a pre-pubescent boy, for those were the very attributes that gained me all the negative attention I never wanted.

I also changed my name… kinda. I go by George now, not that anyone besides teachers has asked.

The last thing that's saved me from the misery of sophomore year is the fact that I'm not actually ever _really _going to be a sophomore. I just… skipped, I guess you could say. Technically, I'm listed in the sophomore class roster, but most of my classes are junior, or eleventh grade material. As a result, my study hall is during a regularly scheduled junior slot, which doesn't bother me, since I don't need to worry about the people "my age" recognizing me.

I slipped into Goode's vast library, books of every type lining the walls and the scattered shelves and stacks around the large space. I found a table in a secluded corner, where there was already a tall boy with dark hair who had a book in his lap and papers messily spread all over the table. I didn't think someone could be so disorganized so early in the school year. He seemed to not be reading, and instead was fixated on a stained-glass window just to the right of the L-N section.

"Can I sit here?" I asked, and he snapped out of his trance, nodded, and picked up the book, obviously making an effort. I nodded, relieved that my new "table buddy" wasn't about to distract me. I got enough of that at home; there are just too many people there in order for ANYONE to focus. (My parents decided, about 8 years ago, to rekindle their romance. They've had a lot of fun since then…)

I took out my books, binders, and pencils from my bag and began to read the directions for my AP World History assignment when the chair of the boy in front of me screeched. Startled, I looked up, where he looked about as equally as surprised by the noise as I.

"Sorry," he mouthed, and with a crooked grin, went back to studying. I looked up for a moment, then tried to go back to studying.

_Tap tap tap tap tap _

I looked up, and he was tapping a pencil on the table as he read. That wasn't what distracted me in the long run, though.

He bit his lip, very Bella Swan style, and his brow was furrowed in concentration. His right hand moved, very slowly, I might add, while his eyes followed his pointer finger as it traced the words (presumably) along the page.

I pitied him. I did. Not reading seemed, to me, like one of the worst things ion the world. I loved reading. Ever since I was a baby, I've been reading, and I've loved it. For a week in third grade, I refused to go to school so I could read the entire Harry Potter series, which wasn't even complete at the time. I finished it in three days, but didn't go back Thursday or Friday so that I could re-read them.

The sight of this, to be honest, very attractive and probably not too smart kid struggling, made me sad. I wanted to help.

"Excuse me," I said, rapping on the table to gain his attention, "I notice that you seem to be having a bit of trouble." He gave me a sheepish smile.

"Yeah, I guess I am," he replied.

"Do you need help?" I tried to offer him assistance, and for a second, I thought he took it.

"Probably," he responded, and I began to shift my things, preparing to help him in whatever it is he was doing. Before I knew it, though, he was up and out of his seat, and as I watched, he wandered (seemingly) aimlessly around the library, and then he suddenly had a focus. He went up to a blonde girl seated across the room from my table and began talking to her while she tried to ignore him. He continued to pester the poor girl until she seemed to give in to his pleas, and she got up, following him as he carried her books (how chivalrous) to where I was.

I was a bit disappointed. It wasn't because I wouldn't get to tutor this good looking (albeit dumb) boy, although I wish I could've, but it was more that I liked being in control of my study-place atmosphere. There's a reason I skipped a grade. I'm good at being in control (as someone living with six younger siblings and deranged elderly people would be), and being in control of myself and my habits is my specialty.

Every morning I get up at 6:30 and take a fifteen minute shower. I eat oatmeal for breakfast then make five sandwiches; one for myself and four for the little ones in school. Then I go to the library, pick up a book for the day, and walk to the local coffee shop, Rhonda's Café, for a quick coffee before school. After school, I go home, do homework or study for precisely two hours before the kids come home. When they do get home, I give them snack and help them with their homework until dinner (which I make…). My parents then come home from their jobs as Yoga Therapists (its therapy while teaching yoga- a smash with the billionaires around here.) I then read for a while longer, and I'll be asleep by 10:30. Always.

Anyways, the blonde girl came over to my table, and pulled a chair up to sit next to the boy. To my surprise, she didn't ignore me, but introduced herself.

"Hi, I'm Annabeth. Sorry if we disturb you," she said, and I shrugged.

"Its fine," I replied, "I'm George."

"Right, you're in AP Stat with me, right?" she asked and I nodded. "You're good."

I blushed unused to the compliments, and with that, we were off to work. They didn't talk to me, and I didn't talk to them.

The thing I noticed is that they both seemed to be moving through their work at a slower pace, although the girl, Annabeth, seemed to be a little bit faster than her companion. It was a shame that she seemed to be taking such advanced classes but struggled with the on-level English text. She shut the book with a snap, and I looked down as she looked up, embarrassed at the prospect of her catching me staring.

She whispered something to the boy, along the lines of "screw this," and as I peered over the top of my textbook to see her pulling out another book, this one looked kinda fuzzy to me, and as I focused a little more, I saw that it seemed to be written in another language.

"Percy," she hissed, and he seemed to be zoned out, pensive look on his face. "Percy," she tried again, and when he didn't answer, "Seaweed Brain." Finally, she gave up, not wanting to bother the entire library, and slapped his arm hard. He didn't seem to feel that either. Annabeth seemed to, though, and winced, shaking her hand. She then resorted to rubbing a hand on his back, and it seemed to jerk Percy, I guess his name is, out of his trance with a yelp.

"Sorry…" he laughed, noticing the people staring.

I looked back down at my own papers, noticing that I hadn't gotten nearly as much done as usual. I could always do it at home…

Annabeth pulled a second book out of her backpack and handed it to Percy, and he breathed a rather loud sigh of relief.

"Thank gods… I thought I was gonna fail this semester," he whispered, (apparently not quietly enough).

Thank gods… I must have misheard that. Definitely.

The three of us carried on with our own separate work until I heard tapping again.

_Tap tap tap tap tap_

I looked up. Percy again. Not wanting to be rude, I didn't say anything, but the tapping continued.

_Tap tap tap tap tap _

I'm just glad I didn't have to say anything.

"Percy, shut up," Annabeth scolded, "You're such a seaweed brain. Can't you see you're bothering George with the stupid tapping?"

He rolled his eyes. "Obviously not… I can't control it, ADHD. Wise Girl." He tacked that last bit onto the end sarcastically, though the two of them shared a little look after words. He looked across the table at me. "Sorry George," he apologized.

I shrugged and got back to work. I enjoyed a few more minutes of nice, silent study until another yelp broke the moderate silence of the library.

"Ouch, Perce, you kicked me! " Annabeth glared at him.

"Sorry…" He sounded glum. So would I if she glared at me.

Once again, after a few precious minutes of silence, I resigned to the fact that I probably wouldn't be getting much done in the end.

"I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves, everybody's nerves, everybody's nerves, I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves and this is how it goes… I know a son- Oh!" I look up upon hearing an awfully loud thump on the ground, thankful that he finally stopped singing the awful song.

My siblings sing it (and many other annoying tidbits) ALL THE TIME at home and if I had to deal with it at school I think I'd die.

Percy was on the ground, I think more surprised than hurt, (though if it were me my butt bones would be killing me) and a rather triumphant Annabeth smugly returning to the foreign book.

"I will get you…" he mumbled, climbing back into the hard school-issued chair.

"You try," she replied, and he rolled his eyes, twitching his nose and muttering to himself.

* * *

><p>'<em>Ten more minutes, ten more minutes.<em>' I think to myself, glad that this disastrous study hall is almost over. There have been more squabbles between the two upperclassmen sitting in front of me than the most unhappily married couple ever experience.

Why didn't I move? Because that would show defeat, and failure, and I, George Finkle, do NOT show defeat. I just brush the hair off my face, push my glasses up my nose, and keep trucking it out.

How could they stand to even sit next to each other, let alone, one be tutored by the other. It just seemed impossible.

"Hey, hey Annabeth?" I internally groaned, bracing myself for another little fight.

"What?" There was a pause.

"Can you help me with this one? I can't understand it."

"Oh, sure," she replied, and I was shocked. I snuck a glance and saw their heads together over a worksheet covered in chicken scratch handwriting and yellow highlighter.

"In… the… first… ch-chap-pter, how…does… Huck… de-desc-cri-be… the… ra-il?" He ended, and Annabeth shook her head.

"Nah, the last word is raid. Nice, though. You've almost got all of them this time."

"Yes!" Percy cheered, gaining him many nasty looks from our fellow library patrons. He blushed, as did Annabeth, and he sat back down, embarrassment all over his face.

I spent the rest of the time proofing the work I'd already done, and was mentally preparing myself to finish the rest of it when I got home. I'd rather do it all here. My house is too crazy, and with all the kids and the pets and my senile grandmother running around, I'm surprised I got passed the third grade.

The bell rang and I gathered up my things, putting them carefully into my backpack. I followed the rest of the students trailing out of the library when I saw the two people from the library- Percy and Annabeth. They were holding hands and… did they just kiss?

But… They can't stand each other. Can they? There were the looks, the accidental kicks under the table and shoves off of the hard library chairs and elbows banged into tables. Those annoying questions and frightening glares were all… in love? Romantic pain and suffering, physically and emotionally?

I'm glad I don't have to deal with any of that. I'll happily stay in my asexual box. Forever.


	13. Chapter 13

Toby Bryant

Detention

Detention sucks. Seriously, it's like, the worst. By this point, I don't know why the teachers bother putting me in it because they just know I'm gonna be 'bad' all over again. Honestly, I don't think I'm being bad, I'm being honest. Myself. An individual.

Isn't that what they say school teaches? How to be an 'individual?' I don't see it. The only people I see doing what they say is good are the whole bunch of swots who don't know a damned thing about the real world.

In the real world if someone asks if you'd like to get free ice cream, you say yes. In the real world, if someone offers you the chance to meet Freddy Mercury, you say yes. In the real world, if someone talks about your mom, you beat their ass.

That is why I'm in detention.

Usually, I'm by myself in the 'extra bad' room, as security's coined it. Every once in a while, some other badass wannabe comes in, and this one time, a super hot chick too (after a sexy, sexy catfight). You can say I was surprised when one of the burlier security guards, Locke, all but tossed the kid in and locked the door behind him.

"The little devil bit me!"

I looked at the newbie, and he wasn't really the biggest, strongest, or meanest looking. He was pretty scary, though, I must give him that. He wore all black, from his faded v-neck to his slim-cut jeans, and all the way down to his scuffed black boots.

He looked me over too, I suppose, as he was glaring at me with suspicion in his eyes, one of which was pink and beginning to turn purple.

He took in my appearance, which was similar to his, and for a moment we just glared at each other. The staring war continued, both of us unblinking, and I thought about how much damage could be done (besides biting) with that little body of his. His arms looked thin from beneath the hoodie he'd thrown on once in the security office, and he hardly looked like he could tackle someone to take them down.

"You think I'm weak, don't you?" He said, his voice hard and his eyes cold. "I'm a lot stronger than you think."

"Sure, kid," I replied, barely giving him a second glance. He couldn't be older than fourteen; he was just a little freshie. I bet he only got thrown in here because he got in an itty-bitty fight with a friend and when security got involved he freaked out and bit them.

I leaned back against the wall, not really focusing on anything around me when all of a sudden, I'm on the floor and the kid's on top of me.

"Dude, chill!" I exclaim. I'm breathless, like the wind was knocked right out of me. "What's your problem?"

The kid was still sitting around my torso. "My problem," he said, "Is that I don't like it when twats like you assume." The look in his eye frightened me. It was one of those glares that could pierce the skin, you know? And I know a lot about piercings. I have 5 to prove it.

"Okay, okay!" I shouted, and was really regretting the school's decision to make the walls soundproof. "I won't assume?"

The kid got off of me, and stalked over to the other side of the office, which, to me, seemed to be growing smaller by the second. He sat pouting in the corner for the next ten minutes, and to pass the time, I began to text my best friend, my bro, Stevie Charles. That's his first name. Stevie Charles is one name. Just to clarify.

_bro! whats goin on? _

_**nothing much. got in detention again**_

_really?that sucks _

_**yea. theres a creepy kid in here. i think he wants to slit my throat**_

_haha nice story _

_**no, im serius. he bit locke**_

_o dammm he bit the fat one?_

_**yea and im next **_

_k bye good luck_

_**thanks bye**_

The conversation ended just in time for Locke, who definitely was the fattest security guard at our school to undo the lock on the door and shove it open, giving me time to stash my phone in my backpack.

"You, kid," he said gruffly, pointing to the kid, "someone is coming in to talk to you. If you harm them in any physical or psychological way, the school and the speaker have and will exercise the right to take action through the legal system in both county and state level." It was a speech practiced and preached by every security guard at Goode, and after hearing it so many times, it has been forever burned into my brain.

"Fine," the kid agreed, and seeing who walked through the door, he sat up straighter and kind-of brushed the hair off of his face.

I have to admit, though, I did the same thing.

She was tan, blonde, and leggy, and the combination of the three was so sexy I can't even describe my feelings at that very moment.

"Nico," she said, sitting next to him on the bench across from me, "why did you punch Richard Ellison in the face? I thought we were over that."

I wasn't even listening to what she was saying; I was just watching her lips… and her boobs. They were… really round. And hot.

"He was just really annoying me, alright?" Nico huffed, and the blonde sighed.

I choked on air. It was so hot.

"Nico, you don't punch people because they annoy you, it isn't done." He rolled his eyes. "Are you going to apologize? The principal seems to think you should."

"I don't apologize to people for making fun of my dead family." The girl's mouth parted onto a perfect little 'o'.

OHMYGODOHMYGOD.

"Nico…" she began, and he cut her off with a loud "no!"

"No, you don't get it! He had my picture and he started on how ugly she was and then started calling her a dumb bitch and stupid whore and I just couldn't take it anymore I punched in the face and I'm glad he broke his perfect little nose because the rest of him was too ugly to match."

The girl tried to give him a hug but he pushed her away.

She could give _me_ a hug anytime.

"Nico?" she asked, and he didn't respond. He seemed to be staring into space, focused on a single point. She touched his arm and he didn't react at all. She groaned in frustration.

I groaned in delight. It was so freakin' sexy.

Suddenly, a male's voice carried down the hall.

"Annabeth?"

OHMYGOD that's such a hot name. That's not even a real name.

She got up and poked a head out into the hallway.

"I'm in here," she called to the mysterious noise, and soon, there was a dark haired kid, who was probably a year or so younger than me, in the security office too.

"Nico?" he called to the kid and received no response, just as it had happened to Annabeth.

"He's in the same kinda shock thing that's been happening every time someone brings up his family," she told the kid, who was suddenly inching closet to Annabeth. I didn't like it.

Insert well-placed sneeze here.

Two heads turn to swivel towards me. The girl comes towards me.

"Oh, wow, I'm so rude, aren't I?" She stuck out a hand. "I'm Annabeth Chase." The boy next to her introduced himself as Percy Jackson.

They took one look at Nico and looked back at each other. Annabeth sighed.

Again: really hot.

"What are we gonna do with him?" she asked, and he shrugged.

"I don't know," he replied, "I can't lift him."

"Hey, if he's too heavy, I'll carry him for you," I offered. Maybe Annabeth was into strong guys.

"It's not that he can't," Annabeth said (slightly flustered, I saw), "but that when Nico gets into these fits, you can't grab him or he'll attack you."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm sure I can take a couple of punches." And before they could even mutter a warning, I was across the room and grabbed Nico around the abdomen, hoisting him in the air.

"See, nothing's wrong." I spoke too soon. Nico started screaming his guts out, thrashing and punching and flailing his limbs all around. Percy and Annabeth looked to each other in alarm, and immediately began to pull him off of me, which was difficult because they were grabbing him from the front, like a child. After they finally got him off of me, Percy laid him on the ground and held his legs down while Annabeth grabbed his head so he wouldn't bang it on the cement floor of the security office.

I looked on as they seemed to handle it as if it was a normal event. It was surprising, but sad. I looked at my phone, which had been left unattended inn my backpack. 4:00, it read. Only a half hour left.

As soon as Nico was calm, they left him lying on the floor and sat on the bench across from me. Annabeth leaned into Percy's side and he put an arm around her shoulder.

They were DATING? That sucks.

Well, Nico woke up… kind of. He opened his eyes a little and started moaning. Instantly, they were at his side. Percy was trying to pick up Nico, which I admit, was difficult because of his height. After he managed to hoist him up bridal style, they walked out of the office; Annabeth pulling keys out of Percy's back pocket.

"Hey, tell the teacher here that he had a seizure. If he has questions he can ask Mr. Blofis in the English office. Thanks," Annabeth said, and walked out of the room behind her (urg) boyfriend.

20 minutes later, Locke came back in.

"Hey! Where'd the little demon go?" He asked, face quickly turning red.

"Uh… He had some kind of seizure," I told him, recounting the tale that Annabeth had given me. "And his family came and got him. They said to talk to Mr… Blowfish?"

"Oh yeah," Locke conceded, "Blowfish. Good guy." He called for him over the walkie-talkie.

"Hey, Blowfish," he started, and there was an exasperated sigh heard on the other end.

"Locke, for the last time, its Blo_fis_, not Blow_fish_. There's a difference."

Locke sighed. "Whatever. Hey, do you have anything to do with a kid with seizures?"

The static crackled over the walkie-talkie.

"Seizures… seizures… I don't think… Wait. Is it a skinny kid? Wears a lot of black?" Locke nodded, then realized that Blowfish couldn't see him, and told him he was right. "Yep, that's my nephew. Did he have one?"

"I guess so. Some people already took him away."

"That's good," the man replied, and the static crackled again. There was a loud sigh. "Are we done? I've got papers to grade."

"Yeah, we are," Locke told him, and looked at me.

"Are _we_ done?" I asked. He shook his head slowly.

"Nice try Bryant." He left the room and locked the door behind him.

"It's Toby!" I shouted after him… not that he cared.


End file.
